[LINK] Peter Cockrane, futurologist... *cough* predicts the death of land lines

[Paul Brooks]

On 29/08/2012 6:34 PM, Fernando Cassia wrote:
> ---
>  Peter Cochrane, a futurologist, predicts that landlines will be
> replaced by wireless technology, as soon as optical fibre is put in
> all office spaces.
>
> "The public switch telephone network will be closed down, it's about
> as relevant as morse code. Optical fibre will replace landlines and
> most devices will connect using wireless. But the landlines can't go
> until there is wireless connectivity to replace it. There won't be
> wireless connectivity to replace it until there is optical fibre
> available to offices and homes in sufficent density"
> ---
> www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9504243/Work-landlines-to-disappear-within-five-years.html
>
> Gee, perhpas mr. futurologist doesn´t know that installing fibre
> doesn´t mean not having land lines, quite the contrary, fibre can
> carry lots of virtual ´land lines´? and what about the cost of calls
> to the PSTN from land lines vs mobile phones?
>
> And then there´s the issue of call quality, network reliability (or
> lack thereof) of wireless (smartphones) vs land lines.... (even
> virtual land lines over ftth)
> FC
>
Agreed - since when did the PSTN necessarily relate to land-lines, whether copper or
fibre?
PSTN is about the ability to reach any other PSTN terminal on the planet by dialling a
E.164 number. Even mobiles are part of the PSTN.

Over time the acronym will change to Packet Switched Telephone Network - but its still
PSTN all the same.

Paul.