Editing Dot-com bubble (section)

===Bubble in telecom===
In the five years after the American [[Telecommunications Act of 1996]] went into effect, [[telecommunications equipment]] companies invested more than $500 billion, mostly financed with debt, into laying fiber optic cable, adding new switches, and building wireless networks.<ref name="now">{{cite news | url=https://www.brookings.edu/research/the-telecommunications-crash-what-to-do-now/ | title=The Telecommunications Crash: What To Do Now? | first=Robert E. | last=Litan | work=[[Brookings Institution]] | date=December 1, 2002 | access-date=March 30, 2018 | archive-date=March 30, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180330212743/https://www.brookings.edu/research/the-telecommunications-crash-what-to-do-now/ | url-status=live }}</ref> In many areas, such as the [[Dulles Technology Corridor]] in Virginia, governments funded technology infrastructure and created favorable business and tax law to encourage companies to expand.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Donnelly |first1=Sally B. |last2=Zagorin |first2=Adam |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,52073-2,00.html |title=D.C. Dotcom |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=August 14, 2000 |url-access=subscription |access-date=February 10, 2020 |archive-date=June 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607165730/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,52073-2,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The growth in capacity vastly outstripped the growth in demand.<ref name="now" /> [[Spectrum auction]]s for [[3G]] in the United Kingdom in April 2000, led by [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]] [[Gordon Brown]], raised £22.5 billion.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/727831.stm | title=UK mobile phone auction nets billions | work=[[BBC News]] | date=April 27, 2000 | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=August 23, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170823181352/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/727831.stm | url-status=live }}</ref> In Germany, in August 2000, the auctions raised £30 billion.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2000/nov/17/citynews.business | title=Consumers pay the price in 3G auction | first=Andrew | last=Osborn | work=[[The Guardian]] | date=November 17, 2000 | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607165736/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2000/nov/17/citynews.business | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | url=https://money.cnn.com/2000/08/17/europe/german_umts/index.htm | title=German phone auction ends | work=[[CNN]] | date=August 17, 2000 | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607165726/https://money.cnn.com/2000/08/17/europe/german_umts/index.htm | url-status=live }}</ref> A 3G [[spectrum auction]] in the United States in 1999 had to be re-run when the winners defaulted on their bids of $4 billion. The re-auction netted 10% of the original sales prices.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2000/apr/13/mobilephones.victorkeegan | title=Dial-a-fortune | first=Victor | last=Keegan | work=[[The Guardian]] | date=April 13, 2000 | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=February 5, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205054229/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2000/apr/13/mobilephones.victorkeegan | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.livemint.com/Opinion/FRQGcvIClZDzCS6EK0Cq4I/Views--Policy-lessons-from-the-3G-failure.html | title=Policy lessons from the 3G failure | first=R. | last=Sukumar | work=[[Mint (newspaper)|Mint]] | date=April 11, 2012 | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607165726/https://www.livemint.com/Opinion/FRQGcvIClZDzCS6EK0Cq4I/Views--Policy-lessons-from-the-3G-failure.html | url-status=live }}</ref> When financing became difficult to obtain as the bubble burst, high [[debt ratio]]s of some companies led to a number of [[bankruptcy|bankruptcies]].<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2837764/Telecoms-crash-like-the-South-Sea-Bubble.html | title=Telecoms crash 'like the South Sea Bubble' | first=Dominic | last=White | work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] | date=December 30, 2002 | url-access=subscription | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607170853/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2837764/Telecoms-crash-like-the-South-Sea-Bubble.html | url-status=live }}</ref> Bond investors recovered just over 20% of their investments.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Oil-bust-on-par-wit-telecom-crash-of-dot-com-era-9218492.php | title=Oil bust on par with telecom crash of dot-com era | first1=David | last1=Hunn | first2=Collin | last2=Eaton | work=[[Houston Chronicle]] | date=September 12, 2016 | access-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-date=June 7, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607165728/https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Oil-bust-on-par-wit-telecom-crash-of-dot-com-era-9218492.php | url-status=live }}</ref> However, several telecom executives sold stock before the crash including [[Philip Anschutz]], who reaped $1.9 billion, [[Joseph Nacchio]], who reaped $248 million, and [[Gary Winnick]], who sold $748 million worth of shares.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2002-08-04/inside-the-telecom-game | title=Inside the Telecom Game | work=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]] | date=August 5, 2002 | url-access=subscription | access-date=2020-06-07 | archive-date=2020-06-07 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607165728/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2002-08-04/inside-the-telecom-game | url-status=live }}</ref>