The Deal of the Century: The Breakup of AT&T

The Deal of the Century chronicles the historic antitrust case that led to the breakup of telecommunications giant AT&T in the 1980s. Steve Coll documents the complex legal battle between the U.S. government and what was then the world's largest corporation. The book follows key figures including AT&T executives, Justice Department lawyers, and federal regulators as they navigate the lengthy court proceedings and negotiations. Through extensive research and interviews, Coll reconstructs the boardroom discussions, legal strategies, and political maneuvering that shaped this watershed moment in American business history. The narrative tracks both the technical aspects of the telecommunications industry and the human drama of corporate leadership under pressure. Coll examines how AT&T's monopoly developed over decades and details the forces that ultimately led to its dissolution. This account of corporate power, regulation, and technological change remains relevant to modern discussions about market competition and antitrust enforcement. The book illustrates how legal decisions and business transformations can fundamentally reshape entire industries and impact everyday consumers.

Readers report this book provides detailed accounts of the AT&T antitrust case and subsequent breakup, with many highlighting Coll's ability to make complex legal and technical concepts understandable. Liked: - Clear explanations of telecommunications regulation - Behind-the-scenes corporate drama and personalities - Research depth and primary source access - Balanced perspective on both government and AT&T positions Disliked: - Dense corporate and legal jargon in some sections - Focus on executives over lower-level employees - Some readers found the pacing slow in technical chapters Ratings: Goodreads: 3.9/5 (87 ratings) Amazon: 4.2/5 (18 reviews) Notable reader comments: "Explains how AT&T's monopoly actually drove innovation" - Goodreads reviewer "Too much detail about corporate meetings and not enough about the impact on consumers" - Amazon reviewer "Best account of this historic antitrust case for non-lawyers" - LibraryThing review

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📱 While covering the AT&T breakup story, author Steve Coll was only 25 years old and working as a young reporter for The Washington Post. He would later go on to win two Pulitzer Prizes and become a staff writer at The New Yorker. 💼 The antitrust case against AT&T was the largest corporate breakup in American history, resulting in the creation of seven regional "Baby Bell" companies and fundamentally reshaping the U.S. telecommunications industry. ⚖️ The final settlement negotiations in 1982 took place in secret over just four days in a suite at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., with only six people in the room. 📞 Before the breakup, AT&T was the world's largest corporation with over one million employees and assets worth $150 billion—more than the next three largest companies combined. 🌟 The book received the Loeb Award for excellence in business journalism and was selected as one of Business Week's ten best business books of 1986.