The analogue landline network, also known as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is privately owned and the decision to upgrade it has been taken by the telecoms industry. That said, DCMS is working closely with industry to ensure nobody is adversely affected by the upgrade, including the small number of rural areas which have limited digital connectivity. I chaired an industry roundtable in January to discuss how best to raise public awareness for the migration.<\/p>
The replacement Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services require a minimum stable connection speed of just 0.5Mbps in order to function correctly. As a result, rural communities with limited digital connectivity can also be upgraded to digital telephony services. For current landline-only customers, it will be possible to order a VoIP landline without purchasing a general internet connection. Moreover, the migration from analogue landlines does not affect the universal service obligations set in the Electronic Communications (Universal Service) Order 2003 which require the designated providers, BT and KCOM, to offer telephony services throughout the UK.<\/p>
Ofcom is responsible for ensuring telecoms providers adhere to their regulatory obligations throughout the migration process. Ofcom has published guidance<\/a> which states that providers must take steps to identify and protect at-risk consumers, including consumers in rural communities who are dependent on their landline. This guidance states that providers should have at least one solution available that enables access to emergency organisations for a minimum of one hour in the event of a power outage. The solution should be suitable for customers needs and should be offered free of charge.<\/p> DCMS is also working hard to improve rural connectivity through the £5 billion Project Gigabit programme and the £1 billion Shared Rural Network.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4647", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Julia Lopez"}
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, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hornchurch and Upminster"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Julia Lopez"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-02-07", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
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, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-02-07T10:53:02.173Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
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, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "10"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Digital, Culture, Media and Sport"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Digital, Culture, Media and Sport"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2023-01-30", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Telephone Systems: Rural Areas"}
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], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to telecommunication providers transitioning from analogue to digital landlines, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of that transition on rural communities.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4410", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Julian Knight"}
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, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Solihull"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Julian Knight"}
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, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1581969", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1581969/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " Under the Communications Act 2003 a fee for a television licence is payable to the BBC. The BBC is responsible for the collection and enforcement of the licence fee, not the Government. The Government is therefore not involved in TV Licensing operations and therefore does not hold the data requested.<\/p> The BBC\u2019s Annual Report and Accounts for 2021/22 states that 4,000 black and white (monochrome) licences were in force as of 31 March 2022. The report does not break down this figure on a regional basis, so I recommend that you raise your query directly with the BBC if you wish to request further information about black and white television licences.<\/p>