The transition in the UK from outdated copper phone and broadband lines to faster and more dependable full fibre technology is rapidly gaining momentum. In the past year, millions have made the switch to this upgraded connectivity, and more households are set to move away from copper cables.
BT’s Openreach has recently announced that 1.2 million properties will be impacted by the “Stop Sell” alerts, with 132 new locations added to the end-of-life list.
The Stop Sell initiative, when implemented at a phone exchange, prohibits internet service providers like BT, Sky, TalkTalk, and Vodafone from offering traditional copper-based phone and broadband services in areas where full fibre is accessible.
This change means that new contracts or renewals will require a switch to fibre broadband. Traditional landlines are also being phased out, with customers transitioning to Digital Voice, a service that routes calls over the internet instead of the old wiring.
Although some elderly and vulnerable customers have expressed concerns about the transition, Digital Voice offers improved call quality and extra features like spam call blocking and call forwarding to mobile phones.
Openreach has assured that customers without access to full fibre yet can continue using their current copper-based services until fibre becomes available in their region.
James Lilley, Openreach’s Managed Customer Migrations Director, emphasized the importance of the stop sell program in advancing the UK’s transition to a modern full fibre future. Retiring legacy copper services where fibre is widespread facilitates a shift to faster, more reliable digital infrastructure, reduces operational costs, and aligns with the industry-wide move towards phasing out the old PSTN phone network.
To check service availability in your area, use the Openreach postcode checker to determine if full fibre has been deployed near you.
Below is the updated list of locations affected by the Stop Sell alerts, including various areas across the UK.
