The Astonishing Price of 1920s Transatlantic Business Calls

In the 1920s, long before modern digital communication, transatlantic phone calls represented a groundbreaking yet extraordinarily expensive form of global connectivity. The first two-way call between London and New York occurred on March 6, 1926, with commercial service launching on January 7, 1927, initiated by AT&T’s Walter S. Gifford and the British GPO’s Sir Evelyn P. Murray. This service instantly revolutionized commercial communications, with reports of over $6 million worth of business conducted between the two cities on its inaugural day.

However, this commercial advantage came at a steep price. Initial cross-Atlantic calls cost around $25 per minute, equivalent to approximately $460 today, embodying the adage “speculate to accumulate.” The financial risks were substantial, as demonstrated by early adopters. In 1928, American businessman Floyd B. Odlum made a 95-minute call from London’s Savoy Hotel to New York, costing a staggering £285—over £15,500 in modern currency. This call was confirmed as a record for both length and cost, yet Odlum declared it “worth it,” garnering significant publicity.

Even Odlum’s expenditure paled in comparison to William C. Durant, another American businessman, who reportedly spent £5,000 (over a quarter of a million pounds today) on long-distance calls connecting London, New York, Berlin, and Paris in under a week. These examples highlight the immense financial outlay required for international business communication in that era, despite the clear benefits of rapid information exchange. The article also touches upon earlier telephone history, noting Brown’s Hotel’s claim to hosting London’s first call in 1877 by Alexander Graham Bell, underscoring the rapid evolution of this transformative technology.

(Source: https://londonist.com/london/history/expensive-phone-call-london-1928)