Evening star., 1928-12-29
NEW ETHICS SEEN
IN SHORT WAVE
Another Field of Law May
Be Opened by Radio
Development.
By DAVID LAWRENCE.

A new field Of law, If not Of ethics
business In so far as the Government is
concerned, may be opened UP In the
sensational developments which have
been brought by the short wave radio.
The grant by the Radio Commission
OF short wave channels TO companies
which have determined to compete with
the Western Union and the Postal Tele-
graph means that the act of the Gov
ernment Is setting up one competitor
against another. No parallel cases
exiSt-for usually If the Government
has a privilege to grant it asks for bids
and awards the same on a basis OF COM
penSation. The short wave channels
are being granted without return to
the Government.
The question now is whether the
Government will be bound in some way
to protect the interests Of the two big
telegraph companies which win be al
fected by the competition. One OF the
companies is asking for short-waVe
channels, too. Lawyers familiar with
communication problems say there is
no specific statute which can prevent
the Radio Commission from doing what
it has done, but they are searching Tor
a basis for litigation on the ground
that 1t is inequitable for the Govern
ment to be party to the injury OF a
business by private concern.
No Redress at Present.
Where such an injury arises from the
law of the survival of the f1ttest In
open competition, there is now no re-
dress unless the competition be unfair,
but the Government, on the other hand,
is never a party to stimulating the
competition or awarding property which
will enable a competitor to gain an ao-
vantage over the other
The single exception, of course, Is
the patent law whereby originality OF
device can be protected. Wave lengths
at present are rare. They have become
Federal jurisdiction by arbitrary act OF
the Federal Government. Permission
to use these channels Is like the right
of way given a railroad or the monop-
olies locally granted to q power COM
pany.
The constitutionality of the radio law
itself has never been tested, and 1t is
this very uncertainty about the rights
and obligations of the Government
which may prevent the communication
situation from being clarified for an
other few years.
Systems Merged in Britain.
In Great Britain the situation has
been met by a merger of all telegraph.
radio and telephone systems. Mergers
of competing systems in this country
are forbidden by statute. The theory
has been that the public was better
served by competition. The problem
now is whether the setting up of several
competitors viii not gradually reduce
the earnings of one group Of stock
holders and transfer them to another
group-a redistribution of income from
the communication business. the
short-waVe companies will operate only
between major cities, leaving to the
Western Union and Postal what Is
termed improbable areas where the
volume of business isn't large.
Reports reaching here are that West
ern Union and Postal officials are not
disturbed by the plans Of the short
wave companies, as they argue there Is
more to the telegraph business than
simply wires and operators, and that
the distribution machinery and per-
sonnel problems and service to the pub
lie through accustomed channels have
been built up over many years ana
cannot be set up overnight.
On the other hand, the question Is
being discussed here as to how far the
short wave will cut in on the telegraph
company incomes and II when such a
reduction is brought about the tele-
graph concerns will have redress from
the Government or the right to receive
an equal number of short-wave chan
nelS themselves.
(Copyright, 1929