Already 1.3 million Swisscom customers make calls via the Internet

From then on, the good old dial telephone will finally be a thing of the past. Beat Döös, head of the switchover to IP technology at Swisscom, told the media in Zurich on Tuesday that 60 percent of the customer base had already switched to telephony via Internet Protocol (IP): "We are on track." It is realistic that Swisscom will have converted all analog connections by the end of 2017. Switzerland's largest telecommunications group had already announced in March 2014 that it would bury analog voice telephony at the end of 2017, almost 160 years after its invention by Johann Philipp Reis. Analog telephony is on the brink of extinction, said Döös: "There are fewer and fewer spare parts and specialists." Hardly any manufacturers are continuing to develop this technology. From the end of 2017, customers who only want to make calls with Swisscom will also need a router to connect their phone. The good old dial telephone will therefore be obsolete, explained Döös. ISDN telephones would also no longer work for private customers. However, this is no longer a major problem. Today, only 4 percent of all private customers still have ISDN. The situation is different for SMEs, where ISDN is still much more widespread. They are offered a router with which ISDN telephones can still be used, explained Döös.

Disadvantage in the event of a power failure

The disadvantage of Internet telephony is that it is no longer possible to make calls if the router or power fails. In addition, it is no longer possible to locate the caller. The old analog telephone, on the other hand, works independently of the power supply at home and can be located. With Internet technology, the landline number from home can also be used in the vacation chalet. However, if the vacation home is on fire, an emergency call from this number would send the fire department to the home instead of the vacation home. "Because the fire department doesn't know that I'm in the vacation home," said Döös. Swisscom has solved the problem today by requiring the customer to confirm the use of the landline number while on the move. However, 80 to 90 percent of all emergency calls already come from cell phones. To ensure that you can be reached in the event of a power cut, you can already switch your landline phone to a cell phone. This means you can still be reached if the power fails.

Special applications as a challenge

Döös admitted that special applications such as lift telephones, alarm systems or home automation devices are a major challenge: "We assume that there are 100,000 lift systems with telephones, 100,000 alarm systems and 100,000 other special applications. That's a good 10 percent of all fixed network connections." However, solutions are already available for all such cases. Swisscom is in close contact with the lift manufacturers. The trend today is for more and more mobile telephones to be installed in lifts. However, a combination of fixed network and mobile phone technology could also be used in lifts, said Döös. Most cell phone antennas are equipped with batteries so that the mobile network can still function for an hour in the event of a power failure. The emergency call centers of the Swiss Red Cross (SRC) also have to change their technology. The SRC offers wristbands with alarm buttons, for example. Döös told the sda news agency that talks were underway with the SRC. Nothing will change for customers of these bracelets.

Finally a spam list

However, making calls using Internet technology also has a number of advantages, said Döös. For example, the landline number can be used on the move with a cell phone. And the voice quality is better. In addition, the display no longer just shows the caller's number, but their full name, unless the caller has had it blocked. Customers can also set up an individual blacklist with numbers of annoying callers. From the end of the year, Swisscom will also be offering a spam filter to prevent unwanted advertising calls, said Döös. This filter is based on a dynamic blacklist that is self-learning. Sunrise is also evaluating possible solutions against unwanted advertising calls, said spokesman Roger Schaller. These are to be introduced in around a year. No one at cable network operator UPC could be reached for comment. (SDA)