Telecommunication

The Federal Communications Commission announced a plan to modernize Telecommunications Relay Services through a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking information about how these services can continue to be delivered efficiently in the current IP-based environment.

When Hurricane Helene ripped through the southeast United States in late 2024, it caused widespread devastation. Communities faced powerful winds, flooding, and infrastructure damage that stretched across multiple states. Yet amid the destruction, public safety sprang into action to protect lives and restore community services quickly and safely. From the field to 9-1-1 call centers, public safety agencies turned to FirstNet to help maintain critical communications when traditional infrastructure was destroyed by the storm.

The U.S. job market is sailing through rough seas at the moment. Cuts for the full year have surged past the 1 million mark and the month of October saw the highest number of layoffs in 20 years, according to new data from career change firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. So, what does this mean for telecommunications and tech employees?

My best guess is the public switched telephone network will ether be dead or dying by the end of 2030. This doesn’t mean the death of telephone voice service, but the end of the regulated service that has been offered by telephone companies. Any voice products that remain will be delivered using Voice over Internet Protocol. The death of the PSTN is being fostered by the Federal Communications Commission, which has made it much easier for telephone companies to tear down or decommission copper telephone networks.

Charter Communications released financial results for the third quarter of 2025. Highlights include: 

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr announced that the items below are tentatively on the agenda for the October Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, October 28, 2025:

Verizon's Board of Directors has appointed Independent Lead Director and former Chief Executive Officer of PayPal Holdings Dan Schulman as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Mark Bertolini has been elected Chairman of the Verizon Board of Directors. Vestberg will serve as Special Advisor through October 4, 2026, during which time he will be focused on ensuring a smooth transition including the integration with Frontier Communications, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026.

US telephone companies of varied shapes and sizes will be retiring portions of their copper networks in the years to come. However, none are currently attacking copper phase-outs like AT&T. AT&T's initiative is simply much more massive in size and scope. As announced in 2024, AT&T is on a mission to shut down power-hungry and broadly inefficient copper-based services across the bulk of its US footprint by the end of 2029. AT&T is making progress. The Federal Communications Commission recently approved AT&T to discontinue legacy services in about 10% of its footprint.

AI is changing the game in telecom, but it’s not just shaping how telcos operate. It’s also shifting what kinds of product sets customers expect from them. At Alianza’s Navigate event in Salt Lake City (UT), analysts broke down the threats and opportunities that are in front of operators. AI in the call center is one use case companies have latched on to as an easy internal AI target.

The California Public Utilities Commission has set significant new requirements to improve the quality of phone service for Californians, especially in emergencies. At its Sept. 18 Voting Meeting, the CPUC approved new service quality standards that will help to ensure that Californians receive reliable telecommunication services. The Decision also extends minimum service quality standards to fixed interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol providers for the first time.