COMPANY·HISTORIES
SIC 4813

Telephone Companies Except Radiotelephone

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

48companies1895–1998founding years44still active4no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironment
FoundedCarolina Telephone and Telegraph Company
1895
FoundedFrontier Corp.
1899
FoundedLincoln Telephone & Telegraph Company
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedMichigan Bell Telephone Co.
1904
1908
TechnologyThe Ford Model T brings the automobile to the middle class.
1913
EconomyThe Federal Reserve is created.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedGTE Corporation
1920
FoundedCable and Wireless plc
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression begins.
1933
EconomyNew Deal reforms reshape banking and industry.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
FoundedPeter Kiewit Sons' Inc.
1941
FoundedDirectorate General of Telecommunications
1943
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long postwar expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented at Bell Labs.
1956
EconomyThe Interstate Highway program remakes commerce.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedComcast CorporationFoundedTelephone and Data Systems, Inc.
1969
1970
EnvironmentThe EPA is founded; environmental regulation expands.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; Nasdaq opens.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
FoundedAlfa, S.A. de C.V.
1974
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins with the Altair.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedIDB Communications Group, Inc.FoundedLCI International, Inc.
1983
FoundedDDI Corporation
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedT-Netix, Inc.
1986
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall 22% in a single day.
FoundedEXCEL Communications Inc.
1988
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
FoundedNetCom Systems AB
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
FoundedU S West, Inc.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2001
EconomyThe September 11 attacks; a recession follows.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 begin to take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Metromedia Company →
Active
Metromedia Company has emerged over the past decade as one of the largest private concerns in the United States, with…
Metromedia Company →
Active
Metromedia Company has emerged over the past decade as one of the largest private concerns in the United States, with…
Carolina Telephone and Telegraph Company →
Active · founded 1895
The Carolina Telephone and Telegraph Company (CT&T) is an independent telephone company serving large portions of North…
Carolina Telephone and Telegraph Company →
Active · founded 1895
The Carolina Telephone and Telegraph Company (CT&T) is an independent telephone company serving large portions of North…
Frontier Corp. →
Active · founded 1899
Confined to upstate New York for most of the century, Rochester Telephone became Frontier Corp.
Frontier Corp. →
Active · founded 1899
Confined to upstate New York for most of the century, Rochester Telephone became Frontier Corp.
Lincoln Telephone & Telegraph Company →
Active · founded 1903
Lincoln Telephone & Telegraph Company is one of the largest telephone companies operating in a contiguous geographical…
Lincoln Telephone & Telegraph Company →
Active · founded 1903
Lincoln Telephone & Telegraph Company is one of the largest telephone companies operating in a contiguous geographical…
Michigan Bell Telephone Co. →
Active · founded 1904
Michigan Bell, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ameritech Corp., is the primary supplier of local telephone service in…
Michigan Bell Telephone Co. →
Active · founded 1904
Michigan Bell, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ameritech Corp., is the primary supplier of local telephone service in…
Nevada Bell Telephone Company →
Active · founded 1913
Nevada Bell was one of the telephone companies that changed forever due to the AT&T divestiture in 1984.
Nevada Bell Telephone Company →
Active · founded 1913
Nevada Bell was one of the telephone companies that changed forever due to the AT&T divestiture in 1984.
GTE Corporation →
Active · founded 1920
GTE Corporation ranked as the world's third-largest publicly owned telecommunications company in 1996.
GTE Corporation →
Active · founded 1920
GTE Corporation ranked as the world's third-largest publicly owned telecommunications company in 1996.
Cable and Wireless plc →
Active · founded 1929 · United Kingdom
As a provider of telecommunications services in more than 50 countries around the globe, Cable and Wireless plc is a…
Cable and Wireless plc →
Active · founded 1929 · United Kingdom
As a provider of telecommunications services in more than 50 countries around the globe, Cable and Wireless plc is a…
Peter Kiewit Sons' Inc. →
Active · founded 1941
Peter Kiewit Sons' Inc.
Peter Kiewit Sons' Inc. →
Active · founded 1941
Peter Kiewit Sons' Inc.
Directorate General of Telecommunications →
Active · founded 1943 · Republic of China
Initially developed as a telegraph service for the military over 100 years ago, Taiwan's Directorate General of…
Directorate General of Telecommunications →
Active · founded 1943 · Republic of China
Initially developed as a telegraph service for the military over 100 years ago, Taiwan's Directorate General of…
Bouygues S.A. →
Active · founded 1952 · France
Bouygues S.A.
Bouygues S.A. →
Active · founded 1952 · France
Bouygues S.A.
Comcast Corporation →
Active · founded 1969
Comcast Corporation is a leading cable, telecommunications, and entertainment firm.
Comcast Corporation →
Active · founded 1969
Comcast Corporation is a leading cable, telecommunications, and entertainment firm.
Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1969
Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., or TDS, is one of the most highly praised telecommunications enterprises in the…
Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1969
Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., or TDS, is one of the most highly praised telecommunications enterprises in the…
Alfa, S.A. de C.V. →
Active · founded 1974 · Mexico
Alfa, S.A.
Alfa, S.A. de C.V. →
Active · founded 1974 · Mexico
Alfa, S.A.
Mercury Communications, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1982 · United Kingdom
Mercury Communications, Ltd.
Mercury Communications, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1982 · United Kingdom
Mercury Communications, Ltd.
IDB Communications Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
The fourth largest U.S.-based international long-distance carrier and the largest U.S.-based international private line…
IDB Communications Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
The fourth largest U.S.-based international long-distance carrier and the largest U.S.-based international private line…
LCI International, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
LCI International, Inc.
LCI International, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
LCI International, Inc.
DDI Corporation →
Active · founded 1984 · Japan
DDI Corporation is a Japanese long distance telephone company established to challenge the monopoly of Nippon Telegraph…
DDI Corporation →
Active · founded 1984 · Japan
DDI Corporation is a Japanese long distance telephone company established to challenge the monopoly of Nippon Telegraph…
T-Netix, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
T-Netix, Inc.
T-Netix, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
T-Netix, Inc.
MFS Communications Company, Inc. →
Active · founded 1987
A leading provider of communication services for businesses and government agencies in the United States, MFS…
MFS Communications Company, Inc. →
Active · founded 1987
A leading provider of communication services for businesses and government agencies in the United States, MFS…
EXCEL Communications Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1988
EXCEL Communications Inc.
EXCEL Communications Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1988
EXCEL Communications Inc.
NetCom Systems AB →
Active · founded 1993 · Sweden
NetCom Systems AB is poised to become Scandinavia's leading private provider of telecommunications services,…
NetCom Systems AB →
Active · founded 1993 · Sweden
NetCom Systems AB is poised to become Scandinavia's leading private provider of telecommunications services,…
U S West, Inc. →
Active · founded 1995
The "new" U S West, Inc.
U S West, Inc. →
Active · founded 1995
The "new" U S West, Inc.
MCI WorldCom, Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1998
MCI WorldCom, Inc.
MCI WorldCom, Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1998
MCI WorldCom, Inc.
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