A Radio Monopoly?

The ever-vigilant Federal Trade Commission has reported that the Radio Corporation of America possesses a virtual monopoly in the radio industry.

The Radio Corporation, in November 1919, took over the properties, patents and licenses of the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Co., and subsequently entered into agreements with companies controlling practically all patents covering radio devices, which made the Radio Corporation the selling agent for these companies. Such patents are gradually running out, however; the Fleming patent on the vacuum tube expired in 1922, and such tubes are now sold ro the public by several competing firms.

The Radio Corporation is also declared to be a dominant factor in radio communication between ships at sea and the shore, although six competitors in this field are also cited in the report.

The report leaves it for the House of Representatives to determine whether its findings indicate that the U. S. anti-trust statutes have been violated.