Research firm TXO conducted a survey of 231 telecom executives across the U.K., U.S., and Canada, finding that 81 percent believe legacy networks are slowing the rollout of new services and that legacy infrastructure is affecting service providers financially and operationally. However, many remain hesitant to retire aging systems such as copper, 2G, and 3G, Capacity Media reported.
Despite this, 79 percent expect their copper networks to remain operational until at least 2028, while 43 percent do not anticipate fully phasing out 2G until 2030. Some brands have already taken steps to modernize their networks, including Deutsche Telekom (OTCQX: DTEGY) planning to shut off its 2G network in 2028, and BT (OTCPK: BTGOF) advocating for a U.K.-wide transition away from copper. TXO’s research, however, indicates these changes may not be happening quickly enough, with 28 percent admitting their copper networks could last until 2030 or beyond.
“Operators face a challenging situation where legacy networks are becoming increasingly costly to maintain, yet full decommissioning is still years away,” said John Teasdale, group chief network officer at TXO. “The continued reliance on copper and legacy mobile networks presents a major obstacle to new network innovations in 5G and fiber, impacting competitiveness and sustainability.”
According to the survey, 98 percent of network decision-makers acknowledged that aging infrastructure was increasing their overall operational costs. This financial burden is compounded by the cost of major outages, with legacy network blackouts causing downtime that costs businesses an average of approximately $1.4 million per year.
“Outages on legacy infrastructure are more frequent and disruptive,” Teasdale said. “Older networks were not designed to handle today’s demands, making them prone to failure, and for many large service providers, maintenance costs have surged by 30-40 percent over the past year. The combination of escalating costs, downtime, and energy inefficiency strengthens the argument for decommissioning legacy network technology.”
Despite ongoing financial and operational challenges, TXO’s survey found telcos remain cautious about large-scale decommissioning. Three-quarters of respondents reported delaying the phase-out of older networks, and 53 percent admitted to postponing decommissioning projects due to labor shortages. For those planning to phase out older systems, 85 percent intend to resell copper infrastructure as part of a circular economy strategy, with 80 percent having similar plans for 2G and 3G equipment.
By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor
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