Comparing live pricing and terms from 400+ carriers and platforms
Fire panels. Elevator phones. Alarm circuits. Fax. If any of these still run on copper, you have a deadline and a hardware lead time to beat.
AT&T filed FCC notices starting in 2022 to retire its TDM-based copper voice network. The retirement happens wire center by wire center. The first wave of Ohio decommissions starts mid-2026, with cascading cutoffs through 2026-2028 depending on the central office serving your address.
When your wire center decommissions, the line stops working. Not slow, not degraded - gone. AT&T is not obligated to find you a replacement. Migrating off the line is the building owner's responsibility.
We have audited dozens of Ohio buildings in the last six months. The average count is 4-12 POTS lines per location, almost all of them tied to building safety or business operations, and almost all under $50 a month individually - which is exactly why nobody notices them.
The usual suspects, in rough order of how often we find them.
Code-compliant replacements, with the cost ranges we are seeing in Ohio.
| Device | Compliant replacement | Monthly | One-time install |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fire alarm panel | Cellular failover, UL864-listed and AHJ-approved | $50-$80/line | $400-$800/panel |
| Elevator phone | Cellular elevator phone unit, ASME A17.1-compliant | $40-$70/car | $300-$600/car |
| Security alarm | Cellular communicator on the alarm panel | $30-$60/line | $200-$400/panel |
| Fax | Cloud fax - e-fax or hosted fax-to-email | $15-$40/line | $0-$100 setup |
| Gate intercom | Cellular intercom with mobile app | $30-$60/gate | $300-$1,200/gate |
| Modem-based circuit | Cellular IoT modem, or replace with an IP-based device | $20-$50/line | $150-$400/device |
Does not work for fire panels - most will not pass UL864 over SIP. Elevator phones need battery backup and a supervised line under ASME A17.1. Most security alarm panels require a dedicated supervised line.
Generic cellular modems do not carry the UL 864 (fire) or UL 1610/2610 (burglar alarm) listings, and the AHJ will not sign off. You need device-specific, code-compliant gear from manufacturers like DMP, Telular, or Honeywell.
Cellular failover hardware lead times are at 12 weeks and rising, and POTS-replacement specialists are booked. Start in May and you land by August. Wait until October and you are looking at January, past several Ohio wire-center cutoff dates.
Pull your last three months of telecom invoices. We identify every POTS line, what it powers, and which wire center serves it, then cross-reference against the FCC retirement docket to tell you how much time you have.
A code-compliant replacement spec'd for each device, including AHJ submission documents for fire panels and elevator phones.
We order from the right manufacturers for AHJ compliance and carry the lead-time risk. Fire panel installs get coordinated with your monitoring company and the AHJ.
Monthly test pass on every replaced device, AHJ re-inspection where required, then we file disconnects on the old POTS lines after 30 days of verified operation so the recurring charge stops.
Send your recent invoices and we will tell you exactly how much time you have. No deck, no obligation.