Progress marches on with the old discarded and the new celebrated. Ofcom, the UK telecoms regulator has recently announced that BT, the UK incumbent, no longer has to provide a fax service under its universal service obligations.

The use of fax machines in offices around the world reached its zenith in the 1980s and 90s but fax has a very long history stretching back to the time when the telegraph was the Internet of its day.
But now, the fax machine’s beeps and screeches are set to become a relic of the past.

And so to the future: Virgin Media is trialling a 5G NR (new radio) service that covers Snowdonia, a rural mountainous area in Wales. Due to the extreme landscape, communications for mountain rescue teams and those walkers and hikers who required assistance is problematic.

The challenges of operating in this environment were overcome by using a Dragon unmanned aircraft system from Snowdonia Aerospace to provide 4G and 5G coverage. Apart from telephony, the airborne network will allow picture sharing, video calling, and the all-important location information.

No doubt Giovanni Caselli, who developed the first commercial fax service between Paris and Marseille in the 1860s, would have been impressed.

PTT doesn’t provide online courses covering fax transmission but, we do offer several courses covering mobile communications including 5G including “Introduction to mobile systems“.

The “skills gap” in the telecoms and ICT industry is well known and has long been an issue for organisations. Recruiting a diverse, well-skilled and enthusiastic workforce continues to be a challenge for employers with many struggling to recruit enough talent.

Encouraging people into the telecoms and ICT industries needs to start at a young age. While many schools are increasingly promoting STEM subjects, lack of knowledge of many industries means that children are not necessarily encouraged into the jobs that require digital skills talent. Ask an average 10-year-old and it is unlikely many will say they want to be a telecoms engineer when they grow up. Better engagement between industry and schools could hopefully change that.

The best, long-term solution to get a skilled workforce into the telecoms and ICT industries is through apprenticeships. PTT has been working with preferred apprenticeship providers for many years to provide the knowledge elements of these apprenticeships. Hundreds of individuals now study PTT courses as part of their apprenticeships every year, giving them the knowledge they need to enter the workforce equipped for a productive future.

Digital apprenticeships supported by PTT include Level 2 Telecoms Field Operative, Level 3 Information Communications Technician and Level 4 Network Engineer. Click here for more information about PTT’s role in delivering telecoms and ICT apprenticeships >>

It seems that looking into a crystal ball to see visions may become a reality. Or at least you will be able to look at your phone to see your relative who is currently abroad magically appear sitting in your living room.

Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica and Vodafone have conducted a pilot with Matsuko, a start-up that has developed a holographic calling app that works on smartphones and tablets.

During a video call using the app, the live 3D image of your cousin in Australia is blended into the image of your living room as captured by your phone’s camera.

Telefonica has also partnered with chip firm Qualcomm to build extended reality hardware and collaborate on the development of metaverse applications.

Such virtual world applications depend on reliable, high bandwidth communication systems.

PTT’s online courses and study programmes provide an immersive experience for technicians and engineers to ensure they have a solid foundation of skills and knowledge needed to maintain those systems and are prepared for new horizons.