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TIMES ARE QUICKLY changing, but never so much as the ongoing advancements in telecommunications. The Federal Communications Commission is taking steps to force carriers to stop selling copper phone lines, or "plain old telephone service" (POTS), which means the legacy analog copper phone line is being phased out sooner rather than later. Networks are aging, parts are unavailable, and technicians are retiring. How does this affect the phone system in your hotel? Depending on what upgrades and advances you have made over the last five years, you may need to switch your PBX systems to a cloud communication platform sooner than later. Oftentimes, however, it is difficult to see the forest for the trees. Considering the recent upheaval in our industry, the challenges facing hoteliers can be overwhelming. The steady increase in travel as restrictions lift, the ongoing trend of "bleisure" travel as more and more offices shut down and employees are allowed to work from anywhere and the pent-up demand to meet in person are exacerbated by the ongoing staffing shortage. Hoteliers have a lot on their plates and replacing a phone system is likely at the bottom of their list.

DIRECTV AGREED TO acquire rival pay-TV provider Dish Network for $1, plus the assumption of debt. The deal, subject to regulatory approval, includes the purchase of Dish TV and Sling TV from owner EchoStar in exchange for DirecTV taking on $9.75 billion of Dish's debt, the companies said in a joint statement. Dish and DirecTV expect the deal to close in the fourth quarter of 2025 if it is approved by the Federal Communications Commission. However, the companies proposed an $18.5 billion deal in 2002 that the FTC blocked over monopoly and antitrust concerns, according to a report published in The New York Times. "DIRECTV operates in a highly competitive video distribution industry," said Bill Morrow, DirecTV's CEO. "With greater scale, we believe a combined DirecTV and Dish will be better positioned to work with programmers, aggregate and distribute content tailored to customers' interests, and achieve operational efficiencies while creating value for customers through additional investment."