Communications Law Commons^™

Regulating Social Media In The Global South, Zahra Takhshid

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

In recent years, the disinformation crisis has made regulating social media platforms a necessity. The consequences of disinformation campaigns are not only limited to election interferences or political debates, but have also included fatal consequences. In response, scholars have generally focused on regulating social media companies in the United States without paying much attention to these companies’ global impact, particularly in the Global South. Lost in the quest to fight disinformation is addressing the social media companies’ neglect of consumer rights in the Global South.

Countries in the Global North, such as the United States, have the power to regulate …

Data Breach (Regulatory) Effects, David Thaw

Articles

No abstract provided.

Enlightened Regulatory Capture, David Thaw

Articles

Regulatory capture generally evokes negative images of private interests exerting excessive influence on government action to advance their own agendas at the expense of the public interest. There are some cases, however, where this conventional wisdom is exactly backwards. This Article explores the first verifiable case, taken from healthcare cybersecurity, where regulatory capture enabled regulators to harness private expertise to advance exclusively public goals. Comparing this example to other attempts at harnessing industry expertise reveals a set of characteristics under which regulatory capture can be used in the public interest. These include: 1) legislatively-mandated adoption of recommendations by an advisory …

Technology Convergence And Federalism: Who Should Decide The Future Of Telecommunications Regulation?, Daniel A. Lyons

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Article critically examines the division of regulatory jurisdiction over telecommunications issues between the federal government and the states. Currently, the line between federal and state jurisdiction varies depending on the service at issue. This compartmentalization might have made sense fifteen years ago, but the advent of technology convergence has largely rendered this model obsolete. Yesterday's telephone and cable companies now compete head-to-head to offer consumers the vaunted "triple play" of voice, video, and internet services. But these telecommunications companies are finding it increasingly difficult to fit new operations into arcane, rigid regulatory compartments. Moreover, services that consumers view as …

Behavioral Advertisement Regulation: How The Negative Perception Of Deep Packet Inspection Technology May Be Limiting The Online Experience, Andrea N. Person

Federal Communications Law Journal

Privacy concerns associated with information available on the Internet has become a central focus for policymakers in Washington, D.C., and around the world. Specifically, the use of deep packet inspection (DPI) technology to offer behavioral advertising on the Internet has become the focus of policy discussions. While there are legitimate concerns related to improper use of this technology, the benefits of the proper use of DPI should not be overlooked. This Note asks how increasing regulatory barriers to limit online behavioral advertising could affect the consumer's experience online. To answer this question, this Note first looks at what DPI is, …

Future Imperfect: Googling For Principles In Online Behavioral Advertising, Brian Stallworth

Federal Communications Law Journal

In a remarkably short time, Google, Inc. has grown from two people working in a rented garage to a pervasive Internet force. Much of Google's unprecedented success stems from online advertising sales which employ behavioral advertising techniques-techniques that track consumer behavior--thereby increasing relevance and decreasing the cost of reaching a targeted audience. In the same span that saw Google's inception and explosive online dominance, the Federal Trade Commission has struggled to define not only the privacy issues involved in online behavioral advertising, but also the practice of behavioral advertising itself. Freed from the restraints of comprehensive federal laws and restrictive …

Who Needs Tickets? Examining Problems In The Growing Online Ticket Resale Industry, Clark P. Kirkman

Federal Communications Law Journal

The Internet has dramatically changed the methods by which people purchase tickets to events. In the past decade, the secondary ticket market has grown exponentially, and today the online ticket resale industry is valued at approximately $4 billion. Although there are consumer benefits to this industry growth, some of the industry practices have precipitated a consumer backlash. This was typified in 2007 when many parents, hoping to purchase tickets to the Hannah Montana "Best of Both Worlds Tour," watched as tickets sold out online in only a few minutes or less. Coupled with this episode was the Ticketmaster v. RMG …

Does Video Delivered Over A Telephone Network Require A Cable Franchise?, Robert W. Crandall, J. Gregory Sidak, Hal J. Singer

Federal Communications Law Journal

This Article examines whether, on legal or policy grounds, video services provided over a telephone network should be regulated as a traditional cable service or whether a different approach is warranted. The Authors find that municipal franchise requirements for video services provided over telephone networks would reduce consumer welfare. The Authors estimate that, even without considering any welfare gains owing to higher quality, the consumer welfare gains from entry exceed the potential loss in franchise fee revenue to municipalities by a factor of nearly three to one.

A Complete Property Right Amendment, John H. Ryskamp

ExpressO

The trend of the eminent domain reform and "Kelo plus" initiatives is toward a comprehensive Constitutional property right incorporating the elements of level of review, nature of government action, and extent of compensation. This article contains a draft amendment which reflects these concerns.

An Economic Approach To The Regulation Of Direct Marketing, Daniel R. Shiman

Federal Communications Law Journal

The growing ubiquity of electronic media and the almost total absence of cost in mass distributions of direct marketing have exacerbated the problem of the increasing intrusion of direct marketing into the privacy of citizens. The Author proposes utilization of a microeconomic social welfare analysis to guide policymakers in determining what forms of direct media should be regulated and what the most effective forms of regulation are likely to be. Sending and receiving costs provide the key factors in determining the extent of the "welfare-reducing marketing" and "marketing aversions," but the Author points to a number of other factors as …

Universal Service: Problems, Solutions, And Responsive Policies, Allen S. Hammond Iv

Federal Communications Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Wandering Along The Road To Competition And Convergence- The Changing Cmrs Roadmap, Leonard J. Kennedy, Heather A. Purcell

Federal Communications Law Journal

In this timely follow-up piece to a 1998 piece entitled A Federal Regulatory Framework that is "Hog Tight, Horse High, and Bull Strong, " the Authors of this Article revisit the progress of American commercial mobile radio services ("CMRS") proliferation and regulation. The piece expresses the concern that balkanization has continued to plague wireless regulation in the United States, as misguided legal analyses and state regulation further hinder wireless development across the nation. While the European Union has witnessed unprecedented growth in this sector, conflicting court and FCC decisions and continued federal, state, and local burdens on CMRS have placed …

Revisiting The Vast Wasteland, Newton N. Minow, Fred H. Cate

Federal Communications Law Journal

No abstract provided.

From Consumers To Users: Shifting The Deeper Structures Of Regulation Toward Sustainable Commons And User Access, Yochai Benkler

Federal Communications Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Online Auction Fraud: Are The Auction Houses Doing All They Should Or Could To Stop Online Fraud?, James M. Snyder

Federal Communications Law Journal

In April 1998, the FTC released a consumer alert pertaining to the increasing problem of online auction fraud. As the number of online auction participants increased, online auction fraud was becoming more prevalent. The FTC requested comments regarding methods that would be appropriate for curbing the increase in consumer deception. Many in the online auction industry proposed voluntary self-regulation. This Note exposes the inadequacy of industry self-regulation by analogizing online auction abuse with the misuse and near downfall of the 900-number industry. This Note proposes that only a regime of strict industry guidelines that the FTC initiates will halt online …

Whither To Regulate?, Patrick A. Miles Jr.

Federal Communications Law Journal

Book Review: Public Policy Toward Cable Television: The Economics of Rate Controls, by Thomas W. Hazlett and Matthew L. Spitzer, The MIT Press and The AEI Press, 1997, 253 pages.

The Information Superhighway: Trolls At The Tollgate, Charles M. Oliver

Federal Communications Law Journal

Prior to the passage of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, policymakers sought funding and regulatory mechanisms capable of fulfilling the vision of an Information Superhighway. Vice President Gore, the Clinton Administration's point person on the issue, initially proposed assessing fees on other sectors of the telecommunications industry to fund construction. Meanwhile, conservatives asserted that deregulation of the industry would achieve the desired result. A compromise ultimately was reached: the 1996 Act requires local exchange carriers to unbundle their networks and provide access at a reasonable cost to competitors. The use of regulatory formulas in lieu of taxes to subsidize a national …

Reconsidering Retransmission Consent: An Examination Of The Retransmission Consent Provision (47 U.S.C. § 325(B)) Of The 1992 Cable Act, Charles Lubinsky

Federal Communications Law Journal

This article examines the legislative and economic history of the retransmission consent provision in the 1992 Cable Act. Retransmission consent provisions in the 1992 Cable Act allow broadcasters to enter into negotiations with cable operators regarding retransmission of their broadcast signal. The 1992 Cable Act requires broadcasters to choose between retransmission consent and must-carry provisions every three years. The first election period ended in October 1996 and a new election period begins January 1, 1997. Retransmission consent has had a noticeable effect on the evolution of cable television broadcasting, although it is arguably unclear whether retransmission consent has addressed the …