Lesson 8

Internet law is a new and growing field. The U.S. Congress is moving slowly and cautiously, avoiding broad legislation that may produce unforeseen consequences. The U.S. Supreme Court said in 1996 that given the "changes taking place in the law, the technology, and the industrial structure related to telecommunications, we believe it is unwise and unnecessary to definitively pick one analogy or one specific set of words." The courts will move slowly in providing guidance on Internet issues. Part of the reason is that for most parties involved (judges and lawyers), the Internet represents an unknown that they are attempting to map according to known rules of law. Many believe that a series of lower court decisions will precede significant U.S. Supreme Court action by at least five years.

• Learning Objectives
  Having completed this module, you should be able to:
  1. Explain how the law affects e-commerce and the Internet
  2. Identify Internet issues that may present legal challenges
  3. Describe how legal issues such as jurisdiction, copyright, and patents apply to software
  4. Identify what constitutes intellectual property and how to protect it
  
  Here’s a summary of the four points:
  1. Impact of Law on E-commerce and the Internet: Legal regulations affect online transactions by setting standards for privacy, security, and consumer protection. Compliance with laws is essential to ensure trust and avoid penalties.
  2. Legal Challenges in Internet Use: Issues like data privacy, cybersecurity, and digital copyright infringement create challenges. Navigating these requires understanding evolving internet laws and potential legal liabilities.
  3. Application of Legal Concepts to Software: Legal concepts such as jurisdiction, copyright, and patents impact software development and distribution. These determine how software can be protected and where legal claims can be made.
  4. Intellectual Property and Its Protection: Intellectual property (IP) includes creations like software, trademarks, and patents. Protecting IP involves legal methods such as copyrights, patents, and trademarks to secure ownership and control over digital assets.

1. Bait-and-switch
2. Copyright:Copyright is a form of protection provided to the authors of "original works of authorship," including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works, both published and unpublished. The copyright protects the form of expression rather than the subject matter of the writin
3. Copyright Act: The Copyright Act is a U.S. law that protects authors' original works of authorship, including literary, dramatic, musical, and certain other intellectual works. It grants copyright holders exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, perform, display, and create derivative works from their creations, thereby fostering creativity and innovation.
4. Domain name:A domain name is a human-readable address for a website or other online resource, like a street address for a house. It replaces the complex numerical IP address, making it easier for people to remember and access websites.
5. Electronic publishing (EP):Electronic publishing (EP) refers to the creation and distribution of digital content, such as e-books, online magazines, and digital libraries. It encompasses various forms of media, including text, images, audio, and video, that are accessed and consumed electronically.
6. Intellectual property: Intellectual property refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works, designs, and symbols, names, and images used in commerce. It is a category of property that includes intangible creations protected by law, and which gives the creator exclusive rights over the use of their creation for a certain period of time.
7. ISP
8. Lanham Act
9. Patent
10. Service mark
11. Trademark:A trademark is a word, name, symbol, or device that is used in trade with goods to indicate the source of the goods and to distinguish them from the goods of others.
12. World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO):The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is an intergovernmental organization with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. WIPO is responsible for the promotion of the protection of intellectual property throughout the world through cooperation among nations, and for the administration of various multilateral treaties dealing with the legal and administrative aspects of intellectual property.

E-Commerce and the Internet are borderless, and it has been postulated that technology will decide what solutions are adopted in cyberspace.
In the next module, you will learn about the key technologies and services underlying e-commerce solutions.

Click the Quiz link below to complete a quiz on law and the Internet.
Electronic Publishing - Quiz