I am in MO. Last several months I’ve gotten a letter from AT&T offering a new service that will be cheaper but won’t work during a power failure unless I have a battery backup. Being a geezer I still have a landline and like the fact that I can use the phone to call the power company when power is lost during a storm or (God forbid) an ice storm.
So it may be that the telecoms are backing away from the old, expensive to maintain technology. Right now it’s voluntary, but no doubt in time it will become mandatory. I can kind of understand because many have dropped landline service.
It will be mandatory and it should only be mandatory when they have something comparable to compete with. A lesser option is not really an option, imo.
Nice of AT&T.
Verizon forced us into that battery back-up with their FIOS fiber optic. They just HAD to “update”.
I listed why landline in my first reply here. But noted immediately the advantage you mention was taken away from us.
JUST WHAT WE ALL NEED——ANOTHER “BATTERY” INSIDE OUR HOMES