Hush-a-phone

Overview


The Hush-a-phone was a device that snapped on to a telephone and made it possible for the user to speak in a whisper. FCC banned the device, following a long-standing policy of prohibiting the sale of any device that attached to the telephone system. Tom Carter, the developer of the Hush-a-phone took the ban to court, and the court overruled the FCC and allowed the device to be sold. This decision has been identified as the first step in the dissolution of AT&T telephone monopoly.