Home > West's Encyclopedia of American Law > Telecommunications

The transmission of words, sounds, images, or data in the form of electronic or electromagnetic signals or impulses.

From the introduction of the telegraph in the United States in the 1840s to the present-day INTERNET computer network, telecommunication has been a central part of American culture and society. What would we do without telephone, radio, broadcast television, CABLE TELEVISION, satellite television, fax machines, cellular telephones, and computer networks? They have become integral parts of our everyday lives. And as telecommunication technology advanced, the more complicated the TELECOMMUNICATIONS industry became. As a result, federal and state governments attempted to regulate the pricing of...