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The FCC Just Booted 1,200 Phone Providers

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(Don’t worry—your front desk will still have dial tone.)

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If you missed the memo: August 27, 2025, was a big day in the hotel telecom world.

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The FCC officially removed over 1,200 providers for failing to meet robocall and anti-spoofing rules. That means a whole lot of “providers” just got bumped from their guest list.

So, if your hotel phone service suddenly ghosted you last week… now you know why.

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What Changed?

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Here’s the short version:

The FCC has been trying to stop spam robocalls and phone scams.

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To do that, they require providers to use something called STIR/SHAKEN (Secure Telephone Identity Revisited / Signature-based Handling of Asserted Information Using toKENs), a tech protocol which verifies a call is actually coming from who it says it is.

Think of it like a passport for your hotel’s phone number.

No signature? No service.

And on August 27, the FCC said: “Enough.”

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That puts hotels at risk of:

• Dropped or blocked calls
• Caller ID flags like “Spam”
• Guests ignoring real calls from your staff
• Damage to your hotel’s reputation and brand trust
• FCC noncompliance—without even realizing it

STIR/SHAKEN in Hotel Terms

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But what is STIR/SHAKEN?  

STIR/SHAKEN is a tech-y way of verifying the number on a guest’s caller ID matches the one making the call. Reassuring your guests that the calls aren’t fake.

It tells carriers and devices, “Yes, this is really the front desk at Hotel XYZ calling. Not a scammer pretending to be them.”

Without it?

Your hotel’s calls might get blocked. Or likely, just show up as Spam.

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Even worse—your guests stop trusting your number altogether.

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Why This Matters for Hotels

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This isn’t just a telecom thing. It’s a guest trust and reputation thing:

• Guests ignoring hotel calls? Bad.
• Hotel phone number marked as spam? Worse.
• Damage to your hotel’s reputation and brand trust? Catastrophic.

And here’s the kicker:

Hotels aren’t managing this themselves. Your vendor is...

But if they drop the ball, you’re the one who pays for it.

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Sometimes in blocked calls, sometimes in brand damage, and sometimes in ways that never show up on the invoice.

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What Hotels Should Know (and Do)

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The takeaway is simple:

This may be a vendor compliance issue, but it becomes your problem the second your front desk loses dial tone—or your brand loses credibility.  

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That’s why reliable, FCC-compliant hotel phone service matters more than ever.

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How Think Simplicity Keeps You Protected

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At Think Simplicity, we’ve been ready for this moment long before it made headlines.  

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✅ We authenticate every hotel call (thanks, STIR/SHAKEN)

✅ We protect your hotel’s identity

✅ we maintain verified FCC status, so you never have to think about it

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So, when your hotel calls, guests know it’s you.

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Want a provider who is FCC-compliant?  

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We’ve got you covered. Learn more about our secure hotel phone service

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Or get your quote today (no forms, no pressure).