Law Commons^™

Symmetry And (Network) Neutrality, Tejas N. Narechania

Michigan Law Review Online

In this short Essay, I take the opportunity to highlight one further potential asymmetry that may yet emerge from the Supreme Court’s application of Chevron’s many doctrines. Drawing on then-Judge Kavanaugh’s disdissental from the D.C. Circuit’s decision affirming network neutrality rules, I suggest that there is at least one vote on the Supreme Court—and perhaps more—for an asymmetric approach to the major questions doctrine. Moreover, I demonstrate how asymmetry in this context is deeply irrational. As applied to network neutrality, the asymmetry has at least one of two effects. One, it might simply favor one large industry over another, …

Telecommunications Infrastructure: Another O-Ring In The Economic Development Of The Third World, James Germano

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Deregulation Of Telephone Services In Ohio, Frank P. Darr

Akron Law Review

Part I reviews the market changes that exist and which, in part, drive the regulatory changes and have emerged because of them. Parts II and III establish the basic regulatory schemes that existed prior and subsequent to divestiture and deregulation at the federal level. Part IV sets out the Ohio regulatory structure which previously controlled the actions of the Ohio commission. Parts V and VI then address the response of the Ohio commission and supreme court to the changes at the federal level and note some potential institutional barriers to deregulation. Part VII introduces the legislative response to deregulation, House …

Telecommunications - Joint Ventures - The Significance Of The At&T-Philips Joint Venture, Edward P. Hudson

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

In All Fairness: Using Political Broadcast Access Doctrine To Tailor Public Campaign Fund Matching, Andrew V. Moshirnia, Aaron T. Dozeman

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Recent United States Supreme Court decisions have undermined the viability of campaign public financing systems, a vital tool for fighting political corruption. First, Citizens United v. FEC allowed privately financed candidates and independent groups to spend unlimited amounts of money on campaigning. Publicly financed candidates now risk being vastly outspent. Second, Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s Freedom PAC v. Bennett invalidated a proportional fund matching system whereby privately financed candidates’ or independent groups’ spending triggered funds to publicly funded candidates. These decisions effectuate a libertarian speech doctrine: all speakers, individual or corporate, must be absolutely unburdened. To comply with this approach, …

No More Shortcuts: Protect Cell Site Location Data With A Warrant Requirement, Lauren E. Babst

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

In modern society, the cell phone has become a virtual extension of most Americans, managing all kinds of personal and business matters. Modern cell tower technology allows cell service providers to accumulate a wealth of individuals’ location information while they use their cell phones, and such data is available for law enforcement to obtain without a warrant. This is problematic under the Fourth Amendment, which protects reasonable expectations of privacy. Under the Katz two-prong test, (1) individuals have an actual, subjective expectation of privacy in their cell site location data, and (2) society is prepared to acknowledge that expectation as …

Sexting Prosecutions: Minors As A Protected Class From Child Pornography Charges, Sarah Thompson

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform Caveat

"Firt love is only a little foolishness and a lot of curiosity." -- George Bernard Shaw Teenagers will explore their sexuality; this is no new phenomenon. However, the ways that teens are exploring their curiosity is changing with technology. This trend has serious repercussions for teens, society, and the law. ‘Sexting’—defined as the act of sending sexually explicit photographs or messages via cell phone—is one recently-developed means of sexual exploration. The practice overlaps with the production, distribution, and possession of child pornography that is banned by both state and federal law. Due to the overlap, minors have been prosecuted under …

Voice Over Internet Protocol: An International Approach To Regulation, Jimar Sanders

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

An Overlooked Basis Of Jurisdiction Of Net Neutrality: The World Trade Organization Agreement On Basic Telecommunications Services, Jennifer A. Manner, Alejandro Hernandez

CommLaw Conspectus: Journal of Communications Law and Technology Policy (1993-2015)

No abstract provided.

Hanging Up Too Early: Remedies To Reduce Robocalls, Maria G. Hibbard

Journal of Law, Technology, & the Internet

No abstract provided.

Satmed: Legal Aspects Of The Physical Layer Of Satellite Telemedicine, Stephen Rooke

Michigan Journal of International Law

In 2003, Paul Hunt, the U.N. Commission on Human Rights' Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, presented a report on the global availability of health care. Special Rapporteur Hunt argued that states are obligated to implement a right to health. Included in this right is the obligation "to ensure that no international agreement or policy adversely impacts upon the right to health, and that .. . international organizations take due account of the right to health, as well as the obligation of international assistance and cooperation, in all policy-making matters." One area Hunt left unexplored in his report was …

Unfit For Prime Time: Why Cable Television Regulations Cannot Perform Trinko's 'Antitrust Function', Keith Klovers

Michigan Law Review

Until recently, regulation and antitrust law operated in tandem to safeguard competition in regulated industries. In three recent decisions-Trinko, Credit Suisse, and Linkline-the Supreme Court limited the operation of the antitrust laws when regulation "performs the antitrust function." This Note argues that cable programming regulations-which are in some respects factually similar to the telecommunications regulations at issue in Trinko and Linkline-do not perform the antitrust function because they cannot deter anticompetitive conduct. As a result, Trinko and its siblings should not foreclose antitrust claims for damages that arise out of certain cable programming disputes.

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 …

Ill Telecommunications: How Internet Infrastructure Providers Lose First Amendment Protection, Nicholas Bramble

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently proposed an Internet nondiscrimination rule: "Subject to reasonable network management, a provider of broadband Internet access service must treat lawful content, applications, and services in a nondiscriminatory manner." Among other requests, the FCC sought comment on whether the proposed nondiscrimination rule would "promote free speech, civic participation, and democratic engagement," and whether it would "impose any burdens on access providers' speech that would be cognizable for purposes of the First Amendment." The purpose of this Article is to suggest that a wide range of responses to these First Amendment questions, offered by telecommunications providers …

Wireless Net Neutrality Regulation And The Problem With Pricing: An Empirical, Cautionary Tale, Babette E.L. Boliek

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

I present here a unique empirical analysis of the consumer welfare benefits of prior regulation in the mobile telecommunications industry. In particular, I analyze the relative consumer benefits of state rate regulation and federal entry regulation. The institution of filing requirements and FTC review and approval of various consumer pricing regimes is highly analogous to the consumer price controls imposed by various state level public utility commissions in the past. Furthermore, the imposition of a zero-price rule is analogous to past rate regulation; in particular it is similar to past wholesale regulation with its underlying principles of open access and …

Regulating Robocalls: Are Automated Calls The Sound Of, Or A Threat To, Democracy, Jason C. Miller

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

African-American voters receive a phone message implying that they are not registered to vote. Others hear "an almost threatening male voice," a "fake New York accent," factual distortions about legislation, false endorsements from controversial groups, calls promoting one candidate claiming to be from his opponent, and a constant barrage of annoying phone calls designed to make voters think a different candidate was sponsoring them. These messages were delivered through automated political telephone calls, also known as robocalls. Robocalls are cheap and efficient--one can deliver a pre-recorded message through 100,000 automated phone calls in one hour for only $2000. Consequently, robocalls …

When Mobile Phones Are Rfid-Equipped - Finding E.U.-U.S. Solutions To Protect Consumer Privacy And Facilitate Mobile Commerce, Nancy J. King

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

New mobile phones have been designed to include delivery of mobile advertising and other useful location-based services, but have they also been designed to protect consumers' privacy? One of the key enabling technologies for these new types of phones and new mobile services is Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), a wireless communication technology that enables the unique identification of tagged objects. In the case of RFID-enabled mobile phones, the personal nature of the devices makes it very likely that, by locating a phone, businesses will also be able to locate its owner. Consumers are currently testing new RFID-enabled phones around the …

Justice, And Only Justice, You Shall Pursue: Network Neutrality, The First Amendment And John Rawls's Theory Of Justice, Amit M. Schejter, Moran Yemini

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

As broadband becomes the public's technology of choice to access the Internet, it is also emerging as the battlefield upon which the struggle for control of the Internet is being fought. Operators who provide physical access to the service claim the right to discriminate among the content providers who use the infrastructure in which the operators have invested. In contrast, content providers warn that exercising such a policy would "undermine the principles that have made the Internet such a success."[...] For academic observers, analysis of this issue has thus far been confined to the areas of property law, innovation, and …

What’S The Hang Up? The Future Of Voip Regulation And Taxation In New Hampshire, Kate Winstanley

The University of New Hampshire Law Review

Alice in Austria wishes to call her friend Bob in Boston, using a Boston area code to avoid charges for an international call. Using VoIP, Alice may initiate her call from any location in Austria where she may find Internet access. Once Alice connects to the Internet, she can transmit her call with the aid of a VoIP service provider, such as Skype. In order to hear and communicate with Bob, Alice can rely on a microphone and a headset that she can plug into her computer. Through VoIP, not only may Alice carry on a telephone conversation, but most …

Regulation Of Municipal Wi-Fi, Michael Botein

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

Anticipating Regulation Of New Telecommunications Technologies: An Argument For The European Model, Jessica Finley

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

This paper argues that the United States should look to the European Community in order to rework its telecommunications regulatory structure. More specifically, the United States should reconsider its current system of regulating various telecommunications sectors separately and follow the European Commission by developing a "single regulatory framework." By regulating the telecommunications transmission separately from telecommunications content, the United States can better anticipate emerging technologies rather than struggling to catch up with new technologies as they exceed the reach of the current regulatory framework. Part II will discuss the U.S. and European telecommunications regulatory frameworks. Part III will discuss the …

Deregulating Telecommunications In Internet Time, James B. Speta

Washington and Lee Law Review

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 has yielded more litigation and less local competition than its supporters expected or intended. Calls for its reform are multiplying. In this Article, Professor Septa diagnoses the 1996 Act's failings and prescribes a framework for reform. The successful deregulations of the transportation industries and of long-distance telecommunications (precedents the 1996 Act sought to follow) demonstrate that the Act should have taken additional steps to promote intermodal telecommunications competition. Transportation deregulation successfully prompted competition where (as in the case of airlines and trucking) multiple firms could compete on an intramodal basis or where (as in the …

Application Of The Public-Trust Doctrine And Principles Of Natural Resource Management To Electromagnetic Spectrum, Patrick S. Ryan

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The Electromagnetic spectrum is among our most valuable natural resources. Yet while the past few decades have seen a rich body of environmental law develop for other natural resources, this movement has largely passed over the electromagnetic spectrum. This Article argues that to remedy that situation, the public-trust doctrine, which is now a cornerstone of modern environmental law, should be extended to the electromagnetic spectrum. This extension would not be a leap: the public-trust doctrine has already been used to guarantee the public access to various bodies of water (not just navigable water), and to protect recreational lakes and beaches, …

The Need For Revisions To The Law Of Wiretapping And Interception Of Email, Robert A. Pikowsky

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

I argue that a person's privacy interest in his email is the same as his privacy interest in a telephone conversation. Moreover, the privacy interest in email remains unchanged regardless of whether it is intercepted in transmission or covertly accessed from the recipient's mailbox. If one accepts this assumption, it follows that the level of protection against surveillance by law enforcement officers should be the same[...] As technology continues to blur the distinction between wire and electronic communication, it becomes apparent that a new methodology must be developed in order to provide logical and consistent protection to private communications. The …

Legacy Of Lost Opportunity: Designated Entities And The Federal Communications Commission's Broadband Pcs Spectrum Auction, A, Mark W. Munson

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The Federal Communications Commission's ("FCC") designated entity policy has challenged the efficiency of the use of auctions to allocate spectrum licenses. As an alternative to comparative hearings and lotteries, auctions provide an effective solution to the costs, administrative burdens, and delays associated with apportioning spectrum. Congress required the FCC to allow firms to participate in the auctions even if they had difficulty in obtaining financing. The FCC gave these firms, known as "designated entities," set-asides and other preferences to assist them in the competitive bidding process. In the broadband Personal Communications Services ("PCS") auctions, however, designated entities frequently were unable …

Investing In China's Telecommunications Market: Reflections On The Rule Of Law And Foreign Investment In China, Leontine D. Chuang

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

The lack of clarity in China's investment laws has translated into an investment environment that is often uncertain, risky, and mired in red tape. In fact, there have been cases where foreign corporations have invested in joint ventures following what they thought to be all the requisite guidelines, only to find out after the money had exchanged hands that something was terribly wrong with the entire agreement. A perfect example of this is the birth, development, and eventual demise of the ill-fated China-China-Foreign (hereinafter "CCF") investment vehicles used for investment in China's telecommunications industry in the past few years. This …

Argentina And The Telecommunications Industry: The Difficult But Necessary Path Toward Liberalization, Vanessa P. Rubinstein

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

This article provides a synopsis of Argentina's telecommunications industry and examines the compelling reasons why Argentina must effectively liberalize the industry while eliminating its hidden protectionist policies. Part II presents a historical overview of the Argentina's telecommunications industry and analyzes Argentina's domestic laws requiring liberalization. Part III explores the main economic policy reasons for why liberalization of the Argentine telecommunications industry is essential. Part IV offers recommendations to better achieve effective development, liberalization and competition in the telecommunications industry. This article concludes that Argentina must completely liberalize its telecommunications industry for basic services, thereby abiding by its domestic legal commitments …

The Digital Dilemma: Ten Challenges Facing Minority-Owned New Media Ventures, Marcelino Ford-Livene

Federal Communications Law Journal

Minority-owned companies competing in print publishing, radio, broadcast television, cable, and telecommunications industries have had no shortage of challenges, setbacks, and failures. Minority-owned companies are struggling to stake a claim in the new media frontier. Some challenges they face are unique to the underlying technology, uncertainty, and international reach of the Web. There should be a sense of urgency with respect to minority participation on the Web. If the promise of broadband leads to new media outlets that are profitable and more dynamic than traditional media, then minorities cannot afford to be left out.

Forum: New Approaches to Minority Media …

"Chevron," Cooperative Federalism, And Telecommunications Reform, Philip J. Weiser

Vanderbilt Law Review

In this Article, Professor Weiser argues that the advent of cooperative federalism statutes, like the Telecommunications Act of 1996, calls for a new conception of federal court review of state agency decisions. In particular, Professor Weiser suggests that federal statutes that invite state agencies to interpret federal law subject only to federal court review should be interpreted as calling for a deferential standard of review. Such a standard, to be sure, would allow cooperative federalism statutes to mean different things in different states. But as Professor Weiser illustrates with reference to the Telecommunications Act, the very nature of cooperative federalism …

New German Telecommunications Act, The, Axel Spies, Jan F. Wrede

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

In the wake of the debate in Germany on how to weather the storms against the "marketplace Germany" (Unternehmensstandort Deutschland) the new German Telecommunications Act ("TA") has been earmarked as a milestone. Its supporters hail the TA to spur competition in Germany's telecommunications market, which they expect to have a turnover of over DM 100 billion (app. US $66 billion) by the year 2000.... This article seeks to summarize the salient features of the TA and to outline the perspectives for potential foreign investors in the German telecommunications market as to the regulatory environment such investor will face. For this …