“I recall they were going to phase out landlines by this year; is that still the case?”
They forced me to get a landline replacement earlier this year. It’s some kind of wireless box you can plug your old cordless phone system into. It’s supposed to be the same as the landline except wireless. It has battery backup for power outages.
The monthly charge is about one third what it was...so far.
What if someone is in a rural area with no wireless coverage?
There are areas in the mountains with no signal.