France will definitely get rid of this network. Millions of households subscribed to the Internet are affected…
In a France undergoing digital transformation, the government has launched the website “treshautdebit.gouv.fr”, to support the French in the transition from ADSL to optical fiber. Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister Delegate for Digital Affairs, announced this initiative at the beginning of November, marking a decisive step towards the planned end of the copper network and the advent of Very High Speed.
The “France Très Haut Débit Plan”, one of the government’s priorities, aims to modernize telecoms infrastructure throughout the country. Thanks to the joint effort of the State, local authorities and private operators, 80% of French people are eligible for fiber and more than half have already adopted this technology. Optical fiber, touted for its performance and durability, will replace the aging copper network.
Orange, the owner of the historic telecom network, has notably formalized the gradual closure of the “copper” network, starting with the areas with the most fiber and with the fewest copper subscribers. This transition will affect all those who still use copper services and therefore ADSL, whether individuals, businesses or administrations.
According to Arcep’s latest annual report on electronic communication services in France, the number of high-speed internet subscriptions still represented a third of subscriptions in 2022, or 10.4 million, the majority of which on xDSL copper network. The number of lines on the copper network was still 17.1 million. The number of subscriptions on copper networks, RTC and DSL, fell in one year by 17% (-3.7 million) to still reach 17.8 million at the end of December 2022. There were still 5 million subscriptions telephone lines remaining on the RTC copper network, i.e. low-speed fixed telephone lines, without boxes.
The timetable is clear: by 2030, the copper network, on which historic telephone and DSL internet services still rely, will have completely given way to optical fiber. Users will be informed individually by operators of the upcoming closure of their copper connection, by post or email. The “treshautdebit.gouv.fr” site will play a key role, offering a search module to check fiber eligibility and find out about connectivity alternatives.
Specific information is also made available to detail the steps to follow and help local elected officials guide their constituents. In addition to the website, local information campaigns will help relay this transition and support citizens.
And change is inevitable. Jean-Noël Barrot underlines that “the modernization of telecoms infrastructure is a government priority, with the commitment to successfully migrate subscribers to Very High Speed, relying mainly on optical fiber”.