The divestiture of the Bell System was the court-mandated breakup of the American Telephone & Telegraph Company (AT&T), which held a legal monopoly on local telephone service in most of the United States. On January 1, 1984, the “Ma Bell” monopoly was split into seven independent regional holding companies, colloquially known as “Baby Bells.” This event remains the most significant antitrust action in corporate history, effectively ending a century of integrated telecommunications and ushering in the modern era of competitive data and voice services.
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