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Thomas Edison
Admiral Dewey: “You may fire when ready, Gridley.”
Senor Marconi and the Yacht Race
James Gordon Bennett
Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World
Joseph Pulitzer
Nellie Bly, special reporter for the New York World
Faraday’s magnetic circuit
Maxwell’s light theory
Hertz wave device
Queen Victoria’s “Alberta”
The Transatlantic Cable: 1858 to 1866; top left: pieces of the 1858 cable system; top right: The Agamemnon and the Whale
Lee De Forest and Reginald Fessenden and
John Stone (no picture)
Galveston, Texas 1900
The Marconi business model• Don’t sell the equipment• Lease the service• Charge a regular,
predictable rate for dependable wireless transmission service
• Push notion that wireless is not just technology, but a “system”
Marconi’s Cape Cod station
SIR JOSEPH. When I was a lad I served a term As office boy to an Attorney's firm.
I cleaned the windows and I swept the floor,
And I polished up the handle of the big front door.
CHORUS. He polished up the handle of the big
front door.
SIR JOSEPH. I polished up that handle so
carefullee That now I am the Ruler of the
Queen's Navee! CHORUS.
He polished up that handle so carefullee,
That now he is the ruler of the Queen's Navee.
SIR JOSEPH. As office boy I made such a mark
That they gave me the post of a junior clerk. I served the writs with a smile so bland,
And I copied all the letters in a big round hand.
CHORUS. He copied all the letters
in a big round hand.
SIR JOSEPH. I copied all the letters in a
hand so free, That now I am the Ruler of
the Queen's Navee!
CHORUS. He copied all the letters
in a hand so free, That now he is the
Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
SIR JOSEPH. In serving writs I made
such a name That an articled clerk I
soon became; I wore clean collars and
a brand-new suit For the pass
examination at the Institute.
CHORUS. For the pass
examination at the Institute.
SIR JOSEPH. That pass examination
did so well for me, That now I am the
Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
CHORUS. That pass examination
did so well for he, That now he is the
Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
SIR JOSEPH. Of legal knowledge I acquired such
a grip That they took me into the
partnership. And that junior partnership, I ween, Was the only ship that I ever had
seen. CHORUS.
Was the only ship that he ever had seen.
SIR JOSEPH. But that kind of ship
so suited me, That now I am the ruler of the Queen's Navee!
CHORUS. But that kind of ship so suited he,
That now he is the ruler of the Queen's Navee!
SIR JOSEPH. I grew so rich that I was
sent By a pocket borough into
Parliament. I always voted at my party's
call, And I never thought of
thinking for myself at all. CHORUS.
He never thought of thinking for himself at all.
SIR JOSEPH. I thought so little, they rewarded me
By making me the Ruler of the Queen's Navee! CHORUS.
He thought so little, they rewarded he By making him the Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
SIR JOSEPH. Now landsmen all,
whoever you may be, If you want to rise to the top of the tree,
If your soul isn't fettered to an office
stool, Be careful to be guided
by this golden rule. CHORUS.
Be careful to be guided by this golden rule.
SIR JOSEPH. Stick close to your desks
and never go to sea, And you all may be rulers of
the Queen's Navee! CHORUS.
Stick close to your desks and never go to sea,
And you all may be rulers of the Queen's Navee!
The interconnectivity problem
• Should AT&T have to offer long distance connections to independent telephone companies?
• Should Marconi operators have to communicate with other wireless services
• Should all instant messenger services be able to communicate with each other?
• Should big phone/broadband companies today offer access to all servers at equal rates for comparable bandwidth use?
• Should cable companies have to run all TV digital multichannels?
Russo-Japanese War, 1905
We don’t care; we don’t have to; we’re the Navy
• We don’t care about your
patents• We don’t care
about your bottom line expenses
• We don’t care about paying you
on time• We don’t care about your need
to build equipment for consumers
• Nothing personal.
Players in the fight over broadcasting
• Marconi
• The Entrepreneurs (DeForest and others)
• The Navy
• The Press
• Public opinion
Fessenden’s Christmas radio broadcast, 1906
De Forest Fleming valve
The Radio Act of 1912• Any "person, company, or
corporation" using a radio transmitter must have a
license• Issued by the Department
of Commerce• Navy exempt from this
statute• Navy given best
frequencies• Amateurs given the worst
• Navy has right to clear airwaves upon reception of
a distress signal
AT&T’s power
• AT&T had by 1913 bought out many independent telephone companies
• Often by bribery or outright political influence
• It also controlled Western Union Telegraph
The Kingsbury Commitment of 1913
• AT&T VP Nathan Kingsbury sends letter to Attorney General, promising:– To divest itself of Western
Union– To provide access to its
wires to independents for long distance service
– To stop acquiring new local companies without permission of state utilities commissions
The 1919 RCA Deal
• British Marconi sells its American division
• General Electric and American Marconi start a new corporation: The Radio Corporation of America
• RCA sells and leases wireless equipment in the U.S., manufactured by G.E. in cooperation with AT&T and Westinghouse
• The deal establishes precedent: Corporations will control broadcasting in the United States, with some regulation and anti-trust oversight by the state
