Gira che ti rigira, dietro ogni distorsione nefasta del mercato, trovi sempre lo stato.

Beginning in 1907 and under the rhetoric of "national security" as well as the fallacious belief that everyone should have a phone, AT&T was granted geographical monopolies by each state. This was done despite the fact that at the turn of 20th century more than 50% of local telephone service was controlled by rivals.

This insulation from competition also took place under the auspices of federal legislation including the Mann-Elkins Act of 1910 and the calculating Kingsbury Commitment of 1913. These edicts effectively cemented AT&T's role as the central telecom firm for the entire country.

In addition, for 70+ years AT&T's international long-distance business was also protected by federal laws. Yet despite the landmark "break-up" of AT&T in 1982, the Baby Bells were and are still given many of the same monopolistic perks that were enjoyed by their predecessor.