In an item today from Bloomberg News, via the LA Times, Verizon's Chief Marketing Officer John Stratton reportedly said at CES, that the operator plans to do away with placing voice calls over copper lines within a seven-year timeframe.

 

So let me get this straight... In seven years, no more copper? I have my doubts that the last Verizon call to run over twisted copper will take place by 2016.

 

Now, with customers switching to mobile phones exclusively, and 4G wireless technologies ramping up, and consumers abandoning traditional phone companies in favor of cable providers and so-called over the top VoIP providers, the concept of evolving beyind copper is not farfetched. Verizon too, by offering voice over its FiOS service, is hastening the migration away from copper.

 

I don't have a problem with the premise. It's the timing. I just happen to think it will take longer than seven years.

 

"We've built our business over the years with circuit-switched voice being our bread and butter . . . but increasingly, we are in the business of selling, basically, data connectivity," Stratton said.

 

We get it. We too saw this day coming.

 

In fact, we've been promoting this migration to IP since the day we launched Internet Telephony magazine in 1998, and quite possibly before, in prior issues of CTI Magazine. I'm setting a calendar reminder in Outlook for seven years from now. I'd like to check back in Janary 2016 and see how close this estimate came to coming true. 

What do you think? Does seven years sound good to you? Maybe sooner? Maybe later? Let me know...