XO and the Inevitable End of TDM

XO is counting down to the end of TDM. Within three years, the competitive service provider intends to sunset products including dial-up Internet access and DSL. Already, the company has shut down its wholesale long-distance services. By the end of 2014, XO expects to be done with most of its TDM services, according to Khali Henderson's article.

The news comes as a surprise, but not a shock. A surprise because, while the industry has anticipated the theoretical demise of TDM and, as a result, the PSTN, this appears to be the first actual example of momentum toward the end. The timing also coincides with the recommendation from an FCC technical group that the agency retire the PSTN within six years.

I'm curious what you, agents and other channel partners, think about the step XO has taken and its implications for the industry. How much does this affect your business models, if at all? After all, cloud and IP services are so popular that maybe there no longer is a need for TDM. Or does that view overlook important end users who will get shut out by TDM's shudown? How important is the TDM to the future of the channel? I would venture to say it's not critical, but I also am not a partner who's in the trenches with this stuff every day. Inform me. I find it interesting when one technology gives way to another; someone always gets left behind but, in this instance, is it the channel or its customers?