Luciano Barcodi was a pioneer in the early days of data compression and transmission. His antennae, installed on a cliff in Cornwall, were the first to beam product and pricing information across oceans and around the world, keeping the commercial wheels of Empire turning. By transmitting alternating patterns of thick and thin air through the higher atmosphere he was able to make thick and thin lines appear on rolls of paper in receiving stations across the planet, these could then be decoded and the Empire would know how much to pay for things.