human
What is the history of the telecommunications industry in the United States?
assistant
The telecommunications industry in the United States has a long and varied history. In the early 1900s, Alexander Graham Bell was the first to successfully transmit speech over a telephone line. By the 1930s, AT&T had become the largest phone company in the world. During World War II, the government created the National Defense Radio System (NDRS) to ensure that military personnel could communicate with each other. After the war, the NDRS evolved into the modern-day cellular network. In the 1970s, the FCC began deregulating the telecommunications industry, allowing companies to enter the market and compete for customers. Today, the US telecom sector is dominated by four major companies: Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile.