In 1978, behold the business promise of…the telephone

Time magazine • May 15, 1978

Unrest in Iran that would eventually lead to the country’s revolution in 1979 prompted a national debate in the US over energy. Bell Telephone Company — predecessor to AT&T — saw such worries as a business opportunity. In this ad a briefcase-toting man stands next to his car, clearly distraught about spiking gas prices. (Or maybe he just found out he wasn’t the 8th caller and missed out on Bee Gees tickets.)

“As energy concerns increase, think twice about driving 50 or 100 miles to the office of a supplier, customer, or consultant,” the omniscient voice of Ma Bell tells him. “Maybe you can break the routine with a phone call.” Hold on a minute — the telephone? As a tool that will make it easier for my company to make money? That’s completely insane. Not according to Bell: “When you look at the phone this way — as a means of saving time and increasing revenue — you begin to see the phone’s business potential.” Genius.