Path Not Taken: Wired Wireless and Broadcasting in the 1920s

Abstract

In 1922, a U.S. Army engineer demonstrated a system for distributing radio signals over telephone and electric power lines. Called wired wireless, it solved 3 of radio's most challenging problems, including how to collect payments directly from the listener instead of indirectly through program sponsorship. Although both American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T) and the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) believed they had rights to wired wireless, neither exploited its potential. This article argues that preexisting business models, defensive business practices, and squabbling over patent rights precluded either company from adequately testing the possibilities of a technology that could have challenged over-the-air broadcasting.