In 1980, when President and CEO, Greg Osler, opened the doors to MERCURY Communication Services, Inc., Southwestern Bell was still part of AT&T. Bell could not sell telephone systems to businesses, only rent them. MERCURY’s technicians still ran across a plug switchboard every once in a while. But, with the new decade, business started recognizing the Return On Investment in purchasing their own switch. In the first five years, approximately 90% of all sales MERCURY made were to businesses still renting from Bell.
