Content by Jennifer Atchison, AI-enhanced (ChatGPT).
For decades, businesses have relied on traditional telephone lines to support fax machines and multifunction printers (MFPs). But the telecommunications infrastructure behind those familiar fax lines is changing.
Verizon is continuing its transition away from legacy copper-based POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) infrastructure toward newer technologies such as fiber and wireless service. Recent reports have highlighted Verizon plans affecting portions of several states, including Delaware and Virginia.
For businesses across Delmarva, that raises a practical question:
What happens to your business fax when the traditional phone line connected to it changes or goes away?
The Issue Is Already Reaching Maryland’s Eastern Shore
This isn’t just a Delaware and Virginia concern.
Delmarva Document Solutions has already received calls from Maryland customers who tell us they have received Verizon notices regarding upcoming changes to their traditional phone service.
WBOC has also documented notices to customers in Wicomico and Somerset Counties related to Verizon’s transition from copper service.
That doesn’t mean every Verizon landline on Delmarva is about to be disconnected. But if your business still relies on a traditional telephone line for faxing, now is a good time to understand what you have and what your alternatives are.
Is Your Fax Machine Still Connected to a POTS Line?
Many businesses still have a dedicated analog telephone line plugged directly into a fax board inside a copier, MFP or standalone fax machine.
While replacement telephone technologies may support fax in some situations, there’s another question worth asking:
Do you still need your fax workflow to depend on a telephone line at all?
Cloud fax provides another option.
With a solution such as eGoldFax, businesses can send and receive faxes electronically without maintaining a traditional analog fax line at the MFP. Employees can send digital documents electronically, while paper documents can still be scanned and faxed from compatible Xerox multifunction printers.
Incoming faxes can also be delivered electronically rather than automatically printing and sitting unattended at a device.
What Is That Analog Fax Line Really Costing You?
There is another reason to review your traditional fax line: cost.
A dedicated analog line used only for faxing can be an easy expense to overlook. It appears on the phone bill month after month – even if the business sends or receives relatively few faxes.
And the line charge may not be the entire cost. Depending on the provider and service, there may also be taxes, regulatory fees, and other charges associated with its maintenance.
For organizations with multiple offices or fax numbers, those expenses multiply quickly.
Take the monthly cost of one fax line, multiply it by 12, and then multiply that by the number of fax lines your organization maintains.
The annual number may surprise you.
Cloud fax changes that equation. Instead of paying for dedicated telephone infrastructure to keep fax machines connected, businesses can move the fax function to the cloud.
The actual savings will vary based on current telephone costs, fax volume, and the number of fax lines being maintained. That’s why a good comparison starts with your actual phone bill – not an industry average.
For many businesses, the question may no longer be:
“What should we replace our POTS fax line with?”
It may be:
“Why are we still paying for a dedicated phone line just to fax?”
What About Your Existing Fax Number?
This is an important concern for established businesses.
Your fax number may appear on your website, forms, business cards, patient or client documents, vendor records, and government filings.
Fortunately, moving to cloud fax doesn’t necessarily mean changing that number. Existing fax numbers can often be ported to eGoldFax, subject to availability and eligibility.
That can allow a business to modernize the technology behind its faxing while maintaining the familiar number customers, vendors and other organizations already use.
Why Consider eGoldFax?
Fax remains important in industries such as healthcare, legal services, accounting, education and government. Modernizing fax doesn’t mean abandoning it – it means removing its dependence on aging telephone infrastructure.
With eGoldFax, organizations can:
- Send and receive faxes electronically.
- Fax digital documents without printing them first.
- Send paper documents from compatible Xerox MFPs.
- Route incoming faxes electronically instead of automatically printing them.
- Eliminate the traditional analog fax line at the MFP.
- Potentially retain established fax numbers through number porting.
- Reduce costs associated with maintaining dedicated fax lines.
For organizations concerned about information security, eGoldFax also maintains ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification and provides encryption and administrative security controls.
Don’t Wait Until Your Fax Line Stops Working
You don’t need to wait for a carrier notice to evaluate your fax environment.
Start with five simple questions:
- How many analog/POTS lines are we paying for?
- Which ones are connected to fax machines or MFPs?
- How much are those lines actually costing us each year?
- How frequently are we still faxing?
- Could we move those fax numbers to the cloud and eliminate unnecessary telephone-line expenses?
You may discover lines that have appeared on your phone bill for years simply because no one wanted to disturb the fax machine connected to them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Verizon discontinuing traditional landlines?
Verizon is retiring portions of its legacy copper network and transitioning customers in affected areas to newer technologies. This does not mean every Verizon landline is being disconnected immediately. Customers affected by specific network changes should receive information from Verizon about their service and available alternatives.
Is Verizon discontinuing landlines in Maryland?
Maryland was not among the states highlighted in the recent national report that prompted renewed attention to this issue. However, Verizon has ongoing network modernization activity in Maryland, and WBOC has documented notices involving customers in Wicomico and Somerset Counties. Delmarva Document Solutions has also received calls from Maryland customers reporting Verizon notices.
Will these changes affect business fax lines?
They can affect businesses whose fax machines rely on traditional copper telephone service. The impact depends on the customer’s location, current service and replacement technology.
Can I fax without a traditional phone line?
Yes. Cloud fax allows organizations to send and receive faxes without maintaining a traditional analog fax line at the MFP.
Can I keep my existing fax number?
Often, yes. Existing fax numbers may be eligible to be ported to a cloud fax service such as eGoldFax. Portability should be confirmed before making any service changes.
What is eGoldFax?
eGoldFax is a cloud fax service that allows organizations to send and receive faxes electronically and through compatible multifunction printers without requiring a traditional analog fax line at the MFP.
Before You Pay Another Fax-Line Bill, Take a Look at Your Options
The transition away from traditional copper telephone infrastructure isn’t the end of faxing. But it is an opportunity to reconsider how you’re faxing – and what you’re paying to do it.
For 28 years, Delmarva Document Solutions has helped businesses and organizations across Maryland, Delaware and Virginia navigate changes in workplace technology. As a Xerox Diamond Agency, we take a consultative approach: understanding what you have today, what you actually need, and what makes financial and operational sense going forward.
If you’ve received a Verizon notice – or you’re simply curious about how much your existing fax lines are costing – contact Delmarva Document Solutions.
We’ll help you review your current fax setup, compare the cost of your existing analog lines with eGoldFax, and determine whether moving your faxing to the cloud could reduce costs while preserving the fax capabilities your business still relies on.
Your fax number may still be important to your business. The expensive phone line behind it may not be.
