T1 technology provides a better option for communication than the technology available over what is these days called POTS (Plain Old Telephone System). The crucial difference between the two is while T1 depends on digitization of voice and data, POTS depends on analog conversion and re-conversion of the same. Digitization of traffic and use of optic fiber cables makes this new system approximately sixty times faster than the conventional phone system. The capacity of carrying high volume of traffic also makes this line many times more efficient than the older one. In fact a single T1 line is capable of supporting twenty four simultaneous conversations in place of only one which the older system is capable of. Moreover, in this new system, the channels are not restricted to any specific telephone. Instead they are considered as a pool and whenever there is a requirement, a particular channel gets busy. The moment it is free it reverts to the pool and is once again to the requirement of another user in the system. Thus a 24 channel T1 connection can service about 100 to 150 users without any of them having to wait for a free line. This speed and flexibility and greater load carrying capacity make it a worthwhile option of communication in today’s fast moving world of business and commerce. Another very important facility which T1 long distance service offers is that it can avoid the local telephone provider and can directly connect you to your long distance provider. Long distance dedicated T1 services usually are toll free services. That is, the caller does not have to pay anything for the call. The receiver enjoys this facility by paying a monthly subscription which depends on the usage. Many business establishments are opting for this new system even though installation of it is a time consuming and costly process and the monthly usage charges are also not cheap! The current scenario of long distance telephony has become extremely competitive and the rates are tumbling down steadily. So, negotiate to the last penny and try to squeeze the maximum concessions you possibly can from the service provider. They claim of an extremely high ‘availability rate’ of 99.99%. In simple terms it means that out of 100 hours of usage, you will be able to use the system for 99.99 hours without any breakdown. Do not forget to include in your contract a punitive clause if the service fails to keep up to that level of efficiency. If you browse the net, you will find that there are many telecom consultants who claim that they can provide you with complete solution ranging from choosing the option which best suits your need to choosing the provider and finally negotiating the best rates possible. They also claim that they can substantially reduce your telecom bills by intelligent choice of schemes and providers. It is not a bad idea to interact with a couple of them to verify whether they can really cause a difference.