--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The breakup of Bell laid the foundation…" description: "\"The breakup of Bell laid the foundation for every important communications revolution since the 1980s onward. There was no way of knowing that thirty y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/tim-wu-7845_answering-machines_the-breakup-of-bell-laid-the-foundation_1055533.png" --- # The breakup of Bell laid the foundation for every… ![“The breakup of Bell laid the foundation for every important communications revolution since the 1980s onward. There was no way of knowing that thirty years on we would have an Internet, handheld computers, and social networking, but it is hard to imagine their coming when they did, had the company…” quote by Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/tim-wu-7845_answering-machines_the-breakup-of-bell-laid-the-foundation_1055533.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/tim-wu-7845_answering-machines_the-breakup-of-bell-laid-the-foundation_1055533.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2e/tim-wu-7845_answering-machines_the-breakup-of-bell-laid-the-foundation_1055533.png) > “The breakup of Bell laid the foundation for every important communications revolution since the 1980s onward. There was no way of knowing that thirty years on we would have an Internet, handheld computers, and social networking, but it is hard to imagine their coming when they did, had the company that bured the answering machine remained intact.” [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The collapse of Bell Labs sparked a cascade of innovations, leading to the internet and mobile tech; had Bell survived, the tech landscape might look very different. **In simple terms:** Bell's fall enabled modern communications revolutions. Key Takeaway Embrace disruption for progress. Themes technology innovation history Mood reflective optimistic Type historical technological When to use this quote - startup strategy - policy making - future tech planning Key Concepts network theory technological diffusion institutional change Questions to Reflect On - How would you preserve innovation after a major industry collapse? - What safeguards can prevent loss of future breakthroughs? A Different Perspective It assumes a single cause for complex technological evolution. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bells/) [Breakup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breakup/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Computer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Networking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/networking/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social network](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-network/) [Social networking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-networking/) ## Related quotes > [Fax me a fact and I'll telegram a hologram or telephone the son of man and tell him he is done. Leave a message…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-williams/fax-me-a-fact-and-i-ll-telegram-a-hologram-or-telephone-the-son-of/) [Saul Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-williams/) > [Texting is a lot like an answering machine. If you don't want to talk to somebody, it's like screening your calls. To me, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-gillick/texting-is-a-lot-like-an-answering-machine-if-you-don-t-want-to-talk/) [Pat Gillick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-gillick/) > [It is not rude to turn off your telephone by switching it on to an answering machine, which is cheaper and less disruptive than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/it-is-not-rude-to-turn-off-your-telephone-by-switching-it-on-to-an/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [The void is ready to snatch you up like a Pac Man machine and Laskshmi is on vacation. You chant Sring - and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-void-is-ready-to-snatch-you-up-like-a-pac-man-machine-and/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I'm much better at saying something on the answering machine than texting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-levit/i-m-much-better-at-saying-something-on-the-answering-machine-than/) [Igor Levit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-levit/) > [Do you ever leave a message for somebody and the answering machine cuts you off, and you have to decide whether you should not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-gaffigan/do-you-ever-leave-a-message-for-somebody-and-the-answering-machine/) [Jim Gaffigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-gaffigan/) > [Telephone message on his manager's answering machine shortly before dying of heroin overdose: I need help bad, man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimi-hendrix/telephone-message-on-his-manager-s-answering-machine-shortly-before/) [Jimi Hendrix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimi-hendrix/) > [I'm not good at texting because I'm an older generation, old school. And nobody ever listens to the answering machine anymore. It's terrible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-levit/i-m-not-good-at-texting-because-i-m-an-older-generation-old-school/) [Igor Levit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-levit/) > [“She never opened her mail in the middle of the day. Sometimes she forgot about it for a week or more until people rang…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicci-french/she-never-opened-her-mail-in-the-middle-of-the-day-sometimes-she/) [Nicci French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicci-french/) > [You wonder if God doesn't have an answering machine to screen out the prayers of the venal and the boring? And in which category…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/you-wonder-if-god-doesn-t-have-an-answering-machine-to-screen-out-the/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [I remember a few years ago I was sitting at home with my wife watching the Oscars. I was sitting on the couch and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-walken/i-remember-a-few-years-ago-i-was-sitting-at-home-with-my-wife/) [Christopher Walken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-walken/) > [Like most people, you listen to yourself on the phone or an answering machine and you're like, 'Ugh.' So to do something with just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-jolie/like-most-people-you-listen-to-yourself-on-the-phone-or-an-answering/) [Angelina Jolie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-jolie/) > [I think people who aren't in film experience that when they hear their voice on an answering machine or something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-portman/i-think-people-who-aren-t-in-film-experience-that-when-they-hear/) [Natalie Portman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-portman/) > [I'm definitely a child of the 21st century and I prefer texting to phone calls, but I would prefer an answering machine over all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-dooling/i-m-definitely-a-child-of-the-21st-century-and-i-prefer-texting-to/) [Brendan Dooling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-dooling/) > [I'm not an answering machine, I'm a questioning machine. If we have all the answers, how come we're in such as mess?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-cardinal/i-m-not-an-answering-machine-i-m-a-questioning-machine-if-we-have-all/) Douglas Cardinal ## More by Tim Wu > [Google has - at least at this point - maintained the line where it keeps organic results separate from the advertisements. But over time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/google-has-at-least-at-this-point-maintained-the-line-where-it-keeps/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [When you pay for stuff, it has more of your interests in heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/when-you-pay-for-stuff-it-has-more-of-your-interests-in-heart/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [“JUST WHAT IS GOOGLE? In 1902, the New York Telephone Company opened the world’s first school for “telephone girls.” It was an exclusive institution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/just-what-is-google-in-1902-the-new-york-telephone-company-opened-the/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [“When we speak of living environments and their effects on us, then, we are often speaking too broadly—of the city, the countryside, and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/when-we-speak-of-living-environments-and-their-effects-on-us-then-we/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [Now, he doesn't control the media, but Donald Trump has been incredibly successful in having his face appear everywhere. You cannot go a day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/now-he-doesn-t-control-the-media-but-donald-trump-has-been-incredibly/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [The best antidote to the disruptive power of innovation is overregulation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/the-best-antidote-to-the-disruptive-power-of-innovation-is/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [“In 1956, two psychologists, Donald Horton and Richard Wohl, would conclude that television’s representation of celebrities was carefully constructed to create an “illusion of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/in-1956-two-psychologists-donald-horton-and-richard-wohl-would/) [tim wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [“Markets are born free, yet no sooner are they born than some would-be emperor is forging chains. Paradoxically,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/markets-are-born-free-yet-no-sooner-are-they-born-than-some-would-be/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [I want to say, however, one thing our media in America has done which didn't happen in other totalitarian states is it has very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/i-want-to-say-however-one-thing-our-media-in-america-has-done-which/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [Advertising just keeps getting heavier and heavier and heavier. It doesn't have any natural limit, and we haven't found the place for the limit.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/advertising-just-keeps-getting-heavier-and-heavier-and-heavier-it/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [I wish more of the web had stayed nonprofit. But the advertising model took over and I think has delivered us to where we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/i-wish-more-of-the-web-had-stayed-nonprofit-but-the-advertising-model/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [There's always people - it doesn't take many - who have a different psychological makeup than most of us who really get joy out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/there-s-always-people-it-doesn-t-take-many-who-have-a-different/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [In the media, traditional media like print, we had boundaries. You know, we had spaces that ads didn't leave. They stayed where they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/in-the-media-traditional-media-like-print-we-had-boundaries-you-know/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [Google - and some of the other sites, YouTube and, you know - Google has an amazing search engine. The map product is incredible.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/google-and-some-of-the-other-sites-youtube-and-you-know-google-has-an/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) > [One thing that all the totalitarian states did was make the great leader's face everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wu/one-thing-that-all-the-totalitarian-states-did-was-make-the-great/) [Tim Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) [Explore all 87 Tim Wu quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wu/) ## More Answering machines quotes > [ \[Answering the phone\] Hello, this is a recording, you've dialed the right number, now hang up and don't do it again. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-sinatra/answering-the-phone-hello-this-is-a-recording-you-ve-dialed-the-right/) [Frank Sinatra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-sinatra/) > [Fax me a fact and I'll telegram a hologram or telephone the son of man and tell him he is done. Leave a message…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-williams/fax-me-a-fact-and-i-ll-telegram-a-hologram-or-telephone-the-son-of/) [Saul Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-williams/) > [I'm definitely a child of the 21st century and I prefer texting to phone calls, but I would prefer an answering machine over all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-dooling/i-m-definitely-a-child-of-the-21st-century-and-i-prefer-texting-to/) [Brendan Dooling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-dooling/) > [Everyone I talked to was a recording-the bank, the elevator, your office, the school, a wrong number. You used to be able to call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/everyone-i-talked-to-was-a-recording-the-bank-the-elevator-your/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [The dead have no ears, no answering machines that we know of, still we call.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hicok/the-dead-have-no-ears-no-answering-machines-that-we-know-of-still-we/) [Bob Hicok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hicok/) > [I think people who aren't in film experience that when they hear their voice on an answering machine or something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-portman/i-think-people-who-aren-t-in-film-experience-that-when-they-hear/) [Natalie Portman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-portman/) > [“She never answers during the day," Max explained. "She lets her machine pick up." People like you are the reason other people get answering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-russo/she-never-answers-during-the-day-max-explained-she-lets-her-machine/) [Richard Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-russo/) > [Like most people, you listen to yourself on the phone or an answering machine and you're like, 'Ugh.' So to do something with just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-jolie/like-most-people-you-listen-to-yourself-on-the-phone-or-an-answering/) [Angelina Jolie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-jolie/) > [People ask me to record their answering machines all the time. I love it. It's a miracle to me that people want to hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-myers/people-ask-me-to-record-their-answering-machines-all-the-time-i-love/) [Mike Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-myers/) > [What I like best about the telephone is that it keeps you in touch with people, particularly people who want to sell you magazine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/what-i-like-best-about-the-telephone-is-that-it-keeps-you-in-touch/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [I remember a few years ago I was sitting at home with my wife watching the Oscars. I was sitting on the couch and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-walken/i-remember-a-few-years-ago-i-was-sitting-at-home-with-my-wife/) [Christopher Walken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-walken/) > [You wonder if God doesn't have an answering machine to screen out the prayers of the venal and the boring? And in which category…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/you-wonder-if-god-doesn-t-have-an-answering-machine-to-screen-out-the/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“She never opened her mail in the middle of the day. Sometimes she forgot about it for a week or more until people rang…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicci-french/she-never-opened-her-mail-in-the-middle-of-the-day-sometimes-she/) [Nicci French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicci-french/) > [I'm not good at texting because I'm an older generation, old school. And nobody ever listens to the answering machine anymore. It's terrible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-levit/i-m-not-good-at-texting-because-i-m-an-older-generation-old-school/) [Igor Levit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-levit/) > [Telephone message on his manager's answering machine shortly before dying of heroin overdose: I need help bad, man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimi-hendrix/telephone-message-on-his-manager-s-answering-machine-shortly-before/) [Jimi Hendrix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimi-hendrix/) Browse all 44 Answering machines quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The breakup of Bell laid the foundation for every important communications revolution since the 1980s onward. 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