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Internet Law

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

Electronic commerce

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Articles 1 - 7 of 7

Full-Text Articles in Law

Legislation For Effective Self-Regulation: A New Approach To Protecting Personal Privacy On The Internet, Richard M. Marsh Jr. Jan 2009

Legislation For Effective Self-Regulation: A New Approach To Protecting Personal Privacy On The Internet, Richard M. Marsh Jr.

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

How can we best reap the benefits of online profiling while avoiding the privacy pitfalls plaguing the e-commerce community? Experts advocate legislation, civil litigation, or self-regulation to provide the ideal solution. Analyzing these proposals reveals a conflict between two basic principles: the need to preserve personal privacy and the desire to foster a thriving Internet-based industry. This Note argues that each approach tends to favor one principle at the expense of the other. This Note also proposes a new solution which creates incentives for effective self-regulation backed with legal enforcement. This scheme strikes an appropriate balance between privacy and e-commerce …


Can We Dicker Online Or Is Traditional Contract Formation Really Dying - Rethinking Traditional Contract Formation For The World Wide Web, Tatiana Melnik Jan 2008

Can We Dicker Online Or Is Traditional Contract Formation Really Dying - Rethinking Traditional Contract Formation For The World Wide Web, Tatiana Melnik

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

When most people imagine the process of contract formation, they picture two people sitting down and negotiating, arguing about particular contract provisions and particular contract terminology, and maybe even involving attorneys to draft an "official" version of the contract. Regardless of the specific details people imagine, traditional contract formation generally involves some form of negotiation between two parties where they choose one set of terms over another. In modern society, however, such negotiation happens very rarely. People enter into many contracts on a daily basis, for example, when they purchase goods or services online. Online purchases are governed by computers, …


E-Contract Doctrine 2.0: Standard Form Contracting In The Age Of Online User Participation , Shmuel I. Becher, Tal Z. Zarsky Jan 2008

E-Contract Doctrine 2.0: Standard Form Contracting In The Age Of Online User Participation , Shmuel I. Becher, Tal Z. Zarsky

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The growing popularity of e-commerce transactions revives the perennial question of consumer contract law: should non-salient provisions of consumer standard form contracts be enforced? With the focus presently on an ex-ante analysis, scholars debate whether consumers can and should read standardized terms at the time of contracting. In today's information age, such a focus might be misguided. The online realm furnishes various tools, so-called "Web 2.0" applications, which encourage the flow of information from experienced to prospective consumers. This Article, therefore, reframes the analysis of online consumer contracts while taking into account this new flow of information. In doing so, …


Snake-Oil Security Claims The Systematic Misrepresentation Of Product Security In The E-Commerce Arena, John R. Michener, Steven D. Mohan, James B. Astrachan, David R. Hale Apr 2003

Snake-Oil Security Claims The Systematic Misrepresentation Of Product Security In The E-Commerce Arena, John R. Michener, Steven D. Mohan, James B. Astrachan, David R. Hale

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The modern commercial systems and software industry in the United States have grown up in a snake-oil salesman's paradise. The largest sector of this industry by far is composed of standard commercial systems that are marketed to provide specified functionality (e.g. Internet web server, firewall, router, etc.) Such products are generally provided with a blanket disclaimer stating that the purchaser must evaluate the suitability of the product for use, and that the user assumes all liability for product behavior. In general, users cannot evaluate and cannot be expected to evaluate the security claims of a product. The ability to analyze …


E-Commerce And Equivalence: Defining The Proper Scope Of Internet Patents--Foreword, Sanjay Prasad, James T. Carmichael Jun 2001

E-Commerce And Equivalence: Defining The Proper Scope Of Internet Patents--Foreword, Sanjay Prasad, James T. Carmichael

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The diverse expression of views provided in the following papers provides a rich foundation for consideration of the issues surrounding the scope of Internet-type patents. On behalf of the Symposium writers and sponsors we invite you to continue consideration of the legal rules and policy implications surrounding this interesting and important subject.


Internet Business Model Patents: Obvious By Analogy, Margo A. Bagley Jun 2001

Internet Business Model Patents: Obvious By Analogy, Margo A. Bagley

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

This Article contends that part of the problem of Internet business model patents is the narrow view of analogous art employed by judges and USPTO examiners which largely excludes relevant "real-world" prior art in the determination of non-obviousness under § 103 of the Patent Act. Consequently, part of the solution lies in helping courts and the USPTO properly to define analogous art for a particular invention. To do so, judges and examiners must recognize the interchangeability of computer programming (i.e. "e-world" activities) to perform a function, with human or mechanical performance of the same function (i.e. "real world" activities). Such …


Defining The Proper Scope Of Internet Patents: If We Don't Know Where We Want To Go, We're Unlikely To Get There, Vincent Chiappetta Jun 2001

Defining The Proper Scope Of Internet Patents: If We Don't Know Where We Want To Go, We're Unlikely To Get There, Vincent Chiappetta

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

Part I of this Article addresses the appropriateness of protecting Internet innovations under the current patent regime. It concludes that the doctrinal, historical and policy arguments require different outcomes regarding computing (patentable subject matter) and competitive arts (at best a difficult fit) innovation. Part II argues that the new electronic economy has given rise to a particular kind of competitive arts "market failure" (interference with first-to-move lead-time incentives) which must be addressed. It concludes, however, that tinkering with the existing patent or copyright regimes is not only complex, but poses significant risks, and should be avoided. Part III sketches the …