After World War II much new technology became available that radically changed the telegraph industry. Old wire lines were too expensive to maintain and were replaced by coaxial cable and microwave links. Very wide-bandwidth channels became available, allowing transmission speeds limited only by the capabilities of the terminal equipment. These new transmission media were later augmented by satellite links and fibre optic transmission lines. In 1974 the Westar satellite, providing enormous capacity for all types of telecommunication, was placed in operation by Western Union. These new transmission channels were complemented by new electronic technology including transistors, integrated circuits, and various microelectronics devices that reduced costs and improved performance. With the advent of the digital computer in the 1960s, the trend toward entirely digital communication began.
The facsimile telegraph was perfected in the 1930s and was widely used for sending photographs and other graphic information over telephone and telegraph lines in an analog transmission system. By the 1980s, however, analog facsimile was virtually replaced by the digital fax machine. In many offices, fax machines and e-mail began to replace other types of communication, including telegrams, TWX, Telex, and, in many cases, the postal service. In the face of changing technology, the Western Union Telegraph Company was reorganized as the Western Union Corporation in 1988 to handle money transfers and related services. It sold its international private line service to Tele-Columbus AG of Switzerland, the Westar satellite system was sold to GM Hughes Electronics Corporation of the United States, and AT&T acquired Western Union’s business services group. The telegraph, which had started in 1837, was replaced in most applications in developed countries by digital data-transmission systems based on computer technology.
Clare D. McGillem