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Re:“Dear Mark. I am writing this to inform you that I shall ... by jacobolus on Friday September 09, 2016 @06:11AM (#12460796)
Go read Tim Wu’s book The Master Switch. The details of these media/communications monopoly histories are fascinating.

It’s hard to answer your counterfactual definitively, but probably, yes.

Re:“Dear Mark. I am writing this to inform you that I shall ... by drvdevd on Friday September 09, 2016 @06:24AM (#12460850)
Thanks for this. Looks interesting.
Re:“Dear Mark. I am writing this to inform you that I shall ... by drvdevd on Friday September 09, 2016 @06:27AM (#12460862)
Including this great quote from the front:

"At stake is not the First Amendment or the right of free speech, but exclusive custody of the master switch." — FRED FRIENDLY