The Breakup of the Bell System and its Impact on US Innovation

We analyze the effects of the 1984 breakup of the Bell System on the rate, direction and diversity of US innovation. In the antitrust case leading to the breakup, AT&T, the holding company of the Bell System and largest telecommunications company at the time, was accused of using exclusionary practices against competitors. The breakup was intended to end these practices. After the breakup, patenting by U.S. inventors increased by 19 %, most notably in core telecommunications technologies, suggesting that exclusionary behavior can lead to "missing innovation." Moreover, the breakup led to a change of direction and a larger diversity of innovation.

Date and time: 
Wednesday 08 June 2022, 16:00 - 17:30
Organisation: 
NBB, KU Leuven, UAntwerpen, UCLouvain, UGent, UHasselt, ULB, ULiège and UMons
Speaker(s): 
Monika Schnitzer (University of Munich)
Venue: 
Auditorium of the National Bank of Belgium (Room B)
Entrance fee: 
free