Within the next decade, an earth-girdling satellite system will relay telephone and TV signals to the remotest corners of the world. Both in Congress and the communications industry the burning question is: Who will own the satellites? Rising to champion private industry, Oklahoma's Democratic Senator Robert S. Kerr has introduced a bill that would give ownership to a consortium of established U.S. communications companies, presumably led by such titans as A.T. & T. and RCA. In the House, New York Democrat William Fitts Ryan has introduced a bill calling for the creation of a TVA in space.
Last week, ending...