@WalterShaub@journa.host That's not really true. They built the product in the 1800s, long before anyone even thought of caller ID. The protocols were built and expanded with backwards-compatibility in mind to prevent old phones from becoming obsolete. It was actually done with the customer in mind! And, if I recall correctly (I could be wrong about this one) that old protocol is essentially mandated by law to allow for interoperability, which means upgrading is also a government battle.

The problem is that modern phones have outgrown that system, but changing it would still make any phone that can't get an instant update (including smartphones that are no longer considered "supported" anymore) obsolete again.

Not to mention that it could involve setting up billions of dollars of physical infrastructure to have each line identify itself at the source.

Then you have to consider how that plays with international phones that don't follow the same rule.

I honestly don't think there was any malice here. It's just the age-old battle between something new and better vs supporting folks' old sunk costs.