Aquiss switches off its last ADSL line after almost 19 years

Aquiss has switched off the last of its ADSL broadband customers, completing the independent ISP's withdrawal from all legacy copper broadband services. The final line was disconnected on 3 August 2026 as the customer migrated to a full-fibre FTTP connection.

That line had been in service for almost 19 years. It was first commissioned on 3 September 2007, a point when speeds would have reached up to 8Mbps if the phone line supported it, though faster options were available through local loop unbundling (LLU) providers where the local telephone exchange had been unbundled.

The Shropshire-based provider confirmed the shutdown as part of its wider shift to Fibre-to-the-Premises.

The end of a copper era

ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) was one of the very first fixed broadband technologies deployed in the UK, launching in July 2000. It ran over existing PSTN or POTS twisted-pair copper telephone lines, and in some cases aluminium.

At launch it offered home users a 0.5Mbps connection. Later evolutions pushed that higher, with ADSL Max capable of up to 8Mbps and ADSL2+ reaching up to 24Mbps as the technology improved.

ADSL was a huge improvement over early narrowband dial-up, which struggled to deliver more than 56Kbps on a single line. But it also caused plenty of frustrations, in particular signal degradation over distance. Most consumers have long since moved to faster and more reliable technologies such as FTTC/VDSL2, FTTP and DOCSIS 3.1 hybrid fibre coax.

What Aquiss said

A spokesperson for Aquiss said: "For over 20 years, ADSL played a vital role in connecting our customers. Today, with the switch-off of the very last ADSL service, that chapter has officially closed.

"While VDSL represented a step forward from ADSL, full fibre is the clear destination. We are supporting all remaining VDSL customers through a smooth transition to FTTP, delivering substantially faster and more reliable broadband for the future."

VDSL next in line

With ADSL gone, Aquiss has turned its attention to its remaining VDSL (fibre-to-the-cabinet) base. The company expects to conclude those services within the next year or so as it continues migrating customers to FTTP, which it describes as more future-proof.

Some remote rural communities and a smattering of digitally disadvantaged urban areas remain stuck in ADSL-only areas on fixed lines. Even many of these can often reach faster speeds through 4G and 5G mobile broadband networks or Starlink's low-earth-orbit satellites.

The move drew questions in readers' comments about whether providers would now refuse new customers where a fibre connection is not possible, with one commenter describing such a stance as cherry-picking even while acknowledging the operational simplicity behind it. Others noted that plenty of ISPs have already stopped offering ADSL while continuing to provide VDSL.

One commenter pointed out that ADSL has no future regardless, and suggested Openreach may incentivise ISPs not to add new users to the network. Interim copper products such as SOTAP, EVA and SOTAP for Analogue were described as temporary measures that do not allow new customers, with SOGEA also seen as having no future since no new cabinets are being installed.

Another reader predicted that within perhaps five years only BT Group ISPs would still offer copper products, as other providers connect to alternative FTTP networks alongside Openreach and conclude that the small number of remaining copper customers is no longer worth the time and money to service.