In the early forties of the 20th century, Western Union has used the first time a commercial intercity microwave transmission system. The size of the commission fee for the transfer is charged according to the Western Union tariffs and depends on the amount of money sent. In 1879 Western Union left the telephone business after losing a lawsuit against Alexander Graham Bell - the patent holder on the phone. In October 1871 the company Western Union began to provide money transfer services, drawing on its own extensive telegraph network. Sibley, the founder of Western Union, did not build a new telegraph lines, and persuaded the other players to join. American Telegraph Company, however, still had to buy it.