Wireless Ship Act of 1910
The Wireless Ship Act of 1910, formally titled "An Act to require apparatus and operators for radio-communication on certain ocean steamers" (36 Public Law 262) and also known as the "Radio Ship Act of 1910" and the "Radio Act of 1910", was the first federal legislation regulating radio communication in the United States. It required certain ocean-going vessels exiting U.S. ports to carry radio equipment, and although it did not require stations or operators to be licensed, it did require certification that operators and radio equipment met minimum standards. The Act was approved on June 24, 1910, and became effective July 1, 1911. It was amended on July 23, 1912, to now cover all ships licensed for carrying 50 passengers and crew, including ones operating on the Great Lakes. This amendment also required the ships to have at least two operators who maintained a continuous watch. Background In the years immediately after its development in the late 1890s, radio communication remained completely unregulated in the United States. On November 3, 1906, U.S. representatives meeting in Berlin signed the first International Radiotelegraph Convention, which called for national licensing of radio transmitters. This proposed treaty was brought before the U.S. Senate for