AT&T (American Telephone and Telegraph Company) Aftermath of Antitrust. Preserving Positive Command and Control,
Abstract
On New Year's Day 1984, the court-ordered divestiture of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company will end universal service by a single system and begin a new competitive era in US communications. The divestiture, which affects every telephone user in the United States, poses a special problem for the Department of Defense, which has relied for decades on AT&T's integrated management and unified network. The author analyzes the effects of divestiture, focuses on the strategic communications necessary for positive command and control during national emergencies. That the Department of Defense opposed fragmenting the national network is a matter of record the author points to the task at hand: the planning and management required to reintegrate the separated components into an instantaneously responsive, reliable whole. His examination of defense capabilities, marketplace realities, national communications policy, and legislative needs advances a blueprint for action by Defense managers and all policymakers charged with ensuring the nation's security. Although divestiture has weakened the national communications network, the author suggests that the competitive marketplace may well hold the solution for making strategic communications better than ever.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1983
- Accession Number
- ADA137114
Entities
People
- G. H. Bolling
Organizations
- National Defense University