The optimism at the turn of the century
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technology advancing rapidly
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evolution and progress
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alleged statement by the head of the US Patent Office
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| early 1900s |
wireless and the military
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wireless and commercial shipping
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wireless and the general public (wireless clubs)
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| role - informational |
| philosophy - point to point |
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Could wireless transmit the human voice?
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| 1906 - Reginald Fessenden (Canadian) |
first voice transmission
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used a telephone as a microphone and an alternator to generate radio waves
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sent a message to ships at sea in the North Atlantic
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| 1907 - Lee deForest (American) |
audion tube (filament, plate, grid)
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the key piece of technology for voice transmission
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| lawsuits begin! |
| key patents are tied up in court |
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| remember the US Navy concerns? |
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1914 World War I |
British Marconi controls 90% of all American wireless commercial communication
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President Wilson authorizes the Navy to take over wireless
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| The Navy will: |
coordinate manufacturing (General Electric and Westinghouse)
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take over shore stations
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put a moratorium on patent suits
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engage in patent pooling
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| result? |
innovation booms
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manufacturers grow
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military trains thousands of wireless operators
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1916 Alexander Bill
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Navy proposes that the government could own wireless and limit foreign ownership
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argues that the United States erred with the telegraph
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| arguments for: |
innovation
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good for the economy
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national security
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| arguments against: |
abuse
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changing conditions - war/peace
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history of private ownership as precedent
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| 1917 - US entry into World War I shelves the bill |
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| after the war ends, the bill comes up again |
| momentum has shifted, the bill dies in 1919 |
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1919 - President Wilson orders Navy to return all seized shore stations
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This meant a return to the pre-war industry conditions |
Navy doesn't like this
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Navy goes to a second alternative - if we can't control wireless, can we help form a privately owned American company that can?
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Navy and Owen D. Young (GE) begin talking
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other wireless industry players get involved
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| 1919 - Radio Corporation of America formed |
the squeeze is put on British Marconi
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British Marconi agrees to sell American wireless assets to RCA
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| historical note: David Sarnoff (Russian) moves from American Marconi to RCA, becomes President of RCA in 1930) |
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| RCA becomes a privately owned, government endorsed monopoly |
cross licensing agreements settle many of the patent disputes
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General Electric owned 30% of RCA - right to manufacture receivers
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Westinghouse owned 21% - right to manufacture receivers
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AT&T owned 10% - right to manufacture and sell transmitters
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RCA - right to sell receivers
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| a problem: these arrangements saw wireless as a point to point medium |
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Early Regulation |
| 1903 - Berlin Convention |
need for standards to decrease maritime interference
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standards for different wireless systems to communicate with each other
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| 1906 - Berlin Convention |
S-O-S is standardized
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US Congress is slow to sign on, fears international regulatory control
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finally passes 1910 Wireless Ship Act
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US ships had to have wireless equipment and an operator
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| 1912 - Titanic |
the role of wireless
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big push for regulation
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| 1912 Radio Act |
beefs up wireless regulations and requires wireless transmitters to apply for a license with the Secretary of Commerce and Labor
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