The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-03-18
CONTROL
by j. s. IS IN
PROSPECT
Federal Trade Commission
Expects to Prove That
Monopoly Exists.
BY WILLIAM HARD.

Inc OLn0F may SOOn De FeBuLaIeu
by a complete Federal Ether Radio
Regulation Commission.
This possibility doomed up strong.
ly today through Developments in
Congress when compared with de-
velopments in the Federal Trade
Commission.
Members Of Othe Federal Trade
Commission, on the eve Of the final
publication of their full report on
the radio situation, let it be known
that they have high hopes Of prov
ing their charge that radio
monopoly exists.
Meanwhile in Congress develop.
ments continued toward perfecting
some such legislation as the White
bill. This bill, besides providing
many other things, provides the
following:
May Refuse License.
1.-The Secretary Of Commerce is
hereby directed to refuse a station
license to any person or corpora.
ton which is unlawfully monopo-
LIKING radio communication through
control of the manufacture or sale
of radio apparatus or through ex-
elusive traffic arrangements or by
any other means"
If this rule is enacted into law
by Congress, and II the Federal
Trade Commission in the hearings
soon to be held before 1t proves
that a radio monopoly exists, a
most extraordinary result will fol-
low.
The Secretary Of Commerce will
be obliged to refuse station licenses
to all broadcasting stations and TO
all commercial traffic stations now
operated directly or indirectly by
the following companies:
Hits Six Companies.
The General Electric Company
The American Telephone and
Telegraph Company
The Westinghouse Company.
The Federal Telegraph Company.
which has a contract with the
Chinese government for radio serv-
Ice across the Pacific.
The Radio Corporation of Ameri.
ca, which does an important bust.
ness in radio service to Britain
and to continental European coun.
tries.
The United Fruit Company, which
handles numerous radio communica-
tons in the direction Of Central
America.
All these companies are accused
by the Federal Trade Commission of
being intregal parts Of the alleged
radio monopoly.
The Secretary Of Commerce would
be Obliged to refuse licenses to all
of them.
Would Disrupt System.
The gap thus made in radio serv-
ice. both for free broadcasting and
for commercial business, would
shatter the whole present sending
and receiving of radio messages.
both within the United States and
to foreign parts.
washington today began to spec
ulate as to" what would then happen.
The radio business would be
knocked to pieces. Radio consum-
ers would be demanding their com.
mercial messages and their concerts
and lectures and other broadcast
bedtime stories. Meanwhile the Sec.
rotary Of Commerce would never
theless be obliged by law to refuse
licenses to the sending stations of
the principal organizations now in
the radio business.
Only two ways out of that state
OF things were suggested here to-
day. One was that the Govern
! ment should take over the whole
radio business and operate it. The
other was that the Government
should accept the existence of a
radio monopoly and proceed to
regulate its activities in all mat
tiers, including the matter of
charges for any and every sort of
radio service.
Dissolution Suggested.
A third way out was indeed sug-
gested, but it was regarded as be.
ing not way out but a way back.
| This way is to take the alleged
| radio monopoly and break it up
into it's original several separate
| fractions.
The proceeding against the al.
legged radio monopoly before the
Federal Trade Commission is pre-
cisely technically for the purpose
Of breaking 1t up into it's original
fractions. The various companies
composing the alleged monopoly
have pooled their patents. These
patents together are said to give
them monopoly. 1t is demanded
by the Federal Trade Commission
that the companies in question
cease from this pooling.
| 1t is claimed by the companies
on the other hand that each of
them without this pooling will be a.
sort of cripple in the doing of radio
business. They claim that all the
patents together are necessary in
order to transmit and receive radio
messages to the best advantage for
the benefit Of the public.
Monopoly May Be Necessary.
1t is felt accordingly that a pool
ing of patents, while possibly vic.
lation of the antitrust laws, may be
found desirable from the standpoint
Of the millions of people who wish
to send radio messages and who
wish to receive broadcast programs.
If that point of view Is accepted,
the existence of monopoly and the
desirability Of monopoly will have
been conceded and the only remain
ing question will be:
Shall this monopoly be govern.
mental or shall 1t be a private
monopoly, regulated in all it's es.
sential public aspects by a Federal
agency?
Copyright Washington Press Service