As long as there are long distance communication technologies that encode digital data in audio or radiofrequency carriers, there will be requirements for modems to mole the carrier at the sending end and demodulate at the receiving end. This technology provides the means of obtaining such signals over long cable lengths. One of the main characteristics that identify the processes of modulation and demodulation is the difference in the frequency component of the data and the carrier on which it is placed. In the old 56 kbps dial-up modems, the data was divided into several components that were modulated in amplitude and phase in multiple audio signals to allow them to be transferred to telephone lines with bandwidths of only 3 to 4 kHz.
Broadband took this further by using radiofrequency rather than audio frequency carriers, which had two advantages - one, allowed much higher bandwidths to pass over a given line; And two, left the audio frequencies available for normal operation of the phone. The actual radiofrequency carriers exist only on the line of the local exchange and the consumer. Other technologies are used for the rest of the route from source to destination.
Transporting data through a carrier means that it is possible to obtain reasonably reliable connections through signal paths with very varied characteristics. This was important for dial-up connections where different data connections even for the same phone number could pick up different routes for different calls and get a mix of good or bad lines depending on which route was taken. In today's broadband era, the ability of a modem and its operators to bridge the gap between the different qualities of telephone lines has led many ADSL customers to manage their own installation without the need for engineers to adjust the Equipment at each end of the line.
With the introduction of fiber optics, the need to transport data on a carrier has disappeared since the full bandwidth of the fiber can be used in baseband mode.
Modems will continue to be important for sending digital information over long distances by radio, such as getting satellite images of the devices that are exploring our solar system, and beyond.