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Tech platforms serve as private courthouses for disputes about speech, lodging, commerce, elections, and reputation. After receiving allegations of defamatory content in top search results, Google must decide between protecting one person's public image and another's profits or speech. Amazon adjudicates disputes between consumers and third-party merchants about defective or counterfeit items. For many small businesses, layoffs and bankruptcy hang in the balance. This Article begins to uncover the processes that these platforms use to resolve disputes and proposes reforms. Other important businesses that intermediate, such as credit card companies ruling on a disputed charge between a merchant and consumer, must by federal law provide timely notice, a reasonable investigation, and other procedural minimums. In contrast, platforms have almost unfettered discretion. Under intense public pressure, Facebook recently began building an independent oversight board that can overrule content moderation decisions. But whether other platforms will follow is unclear, and Facebook's oversight board has significant limits. If the largest platforms face limited competition while serving as the primary arbiters of disputes in the information age, they warrant mandated procedures as did financial institutions before them. The procedures would aim to improve the administration of justice through public accountability and separation of at least one of platforms' executive, legislative, and judicial powers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to increase access to medical services, expanding coverage has long been the preferred solution of policy makers and advocates alike. The calculus appeared straightforward: provide individuals with insurance, and they will be able to see a provider when needed. However, this line of thinking overlooks a crucial intermediary step: provider networks. As provider networks offered by health insurers link available medical services to insurance coverage, their breadth mediates access to health care. Yet the regulation of provider networks is technically, logistically, and normatively complex. What does network regulation currently look like and what should it look like in the future? We take inventory of the ways private and public entities regulate provider networks. Variation across insurance programs and products is truly remarkable, not grounded in empirical justification, and at times inherently absurd. We argue that regulators should be pragmatic and focus on plausible policy levers. These include assuring network accuracy, transparency for consumers, and consumer protections from grievous inadequacies. Ultimately, government regulation provides an important foundation for ensuring minimum levels of access and providing consumers with meaningful information. Yet, information is only truly empowering if consumers can exercise at least some choice in balancing costs, access, and quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This is the latest edition of the DLA Piper column on developments in EU law relating to IP, IT and telecommunications. This news article summarises recent developments that are considered important for practitioners, students and academics in a wide range of information technology, e-commerce, telecommunications and intellectual property areas. It cannot be exhaustive but intends to address the important points. This is a hard copy reference guide, but links to outside web sites are included where possible. No responsibility is assumed for the accuracy of information contained in these links. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This column provides a country-by-country analysis of the latest legal developments, cases and issues relevant to the IT, media and telecommunications' industries in key jurisdictions across the Asia Pacific region. The articles appearing in this column are intended to serve as 'alerts' and are not submitted as detailed analyses of cases or legal developments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This article tracks developments at the national level in key European countries in the area of IT and communications and provides a concise alerting service of important national developments. It is co-ordinated by Herbert Smith Freehills LLP and contributed to by firms across Europe. This column provides a concise alerting service of important national developments in key European countries. Part of its purpose is to complement the Journal's feature articles and briefing notes by keeping readers abreast of what is currently happening "on the ground" at a national level in implementing EU level legislation and international conventions and treaties. Where an item of European National News is of particular significance, CLSR may also cover it in more detail in the current or a subsequent edition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores on the regulations for the market order of Internet information services business in China. Topics discussed include the healthy development of the Internet industry, the legitimate rights of the Internet service providers and the services or products of Internet information service providers.

This is the latest edition of the DLA Piper column on developments in EU law relating to IP, IT and telecommunications. This news article summarises recent developments that are considered important for practitioners, students and academics in a wide range of information technology, e-commerce, telecommunications and intellectual property areas. It cannot be exhaustive but intends to address the important points. This is a hard copy reference guide, but links to outside web sites are included where possible. No responsibility is assumed for the accuracy of information contained in these links. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an increasingly connected world, copying information and disseminating it has never been easier. Unfortunately, this rise in technology and connectivity has also led to an increased taking -- without permission or attribution -- from compilers of factual content and creators of uncopyrightable works. Currently, where the factual content is not copyright protected, the available remedy to the victims of such free riding is the state law hot news misappropriation doctrine. Regardless of the availability of the remedy, courts in recent cases have struggled to adapt this doctrine appropriately to apply to the situations created by the Internet age. Although some scholars argue that federal copyright law preempts the hot news misappropriation doctrine, even if it survives preemption it is still an inappropriate remedy in modern society. Simply put, the hot news misappropriation doctrine is failing to work in today's technological world. The confusion surrounding the hot news misappropriation doctrine indicates that the courts' current solution addressing free riding concerns is ineffective. The doctrine fails because it is vague and can be interpreted to both over-and underprotect information, depending on the context. Legislative action is needed to protect uncopyrightable information that (1) is an essential feature of a plaintiff's business, (2) provides a benefit to society, and (3) is unlikely to be generated without an incentive of protection for an appropriate time to allow the creator of the work to recover his costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the extent to which legal issues that pertain to the work of information professionals are addressed in Canadian graduate library and archives education programs. Course descriptions, syllabi, and reading lists of courses that covered legal issues that were taught during the 2008-09 academic year were gathered from the websites of the nine schools and from instructors (where detailed course materials were not available online). The legal issues that are addressed most frequently are Copyright, Intellectual Freedom, and Privacy. While this snapshot of the coverage of legal issues in Canadian library and archival studies programs is, for various reasons, incomplete, it nonetheless provides an impression of the main topics covered, their relative importance, and the wide range of contexts in which they arise. Further study is required to see if the coverage meets the needs of graduates and their employers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Law firms are no exception to the trend towards computerized information infrastructures, particularly because the very nature of their business is collecting and storing highly confidential client data. One area of activity which has come under intense security is the integrity of trust accounts. There have been many incidents of trust account fraud reported internationally, including a case in Australia, where a employee of a law firm stole $4,500,000 from the trust funds of forty-two clients. Trust account fraud is also widely associated with money laundering, a growing major crime involving financial transactions that enable unlawful activity to be disguised. Our study involved interviewing principles of ten law companies to find out solicitors’ attitudes to computer security and the possibility of breaches of their trust accounts. We simultaneously carried out a survey to see if the trends identified in our case studies could be backed up with broader quantitative data. An overall finding highlights the fact that law firms were not current with technology to combat computer crime. However, from a human perspective, more urgent issues were discovered such as lack of monitoring of computer systems and inadequate access control. Our conclusions revealed the urgent need for law firms to adopt security controls, implement information security policies and procedures and obtain cooperation from management to communicate these policies to staff. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Copyright of Bulletin des bibliothèques de France is the property of ENSSIB and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article focuses on issues concerning the common law approach that may allow for effective and comprehensive resolution of search engine disputes. It highlights the proposals and legal literature that have been put forth on search engine regulations. It highlights the pragmatic approach to address the possibility to resolve the issues presented by search engines, linked to utilities, essential and facilities,

Purpose - This article aims to outline how the Institute for Scientific and Technical Information (INIST-CNRS), the French leader in the document delivery market, works with a broad national and international network of some 200 libraries and STI centres. It also seeks to provide an overview of recent developments in the French academic ILL network and of French copyright legislation, as well as information on negotiations with publishers on secure electronic delivery. Design/methodology/approach - The article is based on a communication at the 10th Interlending and Document Supply conference, Singapore, 29-31 October 2007. It is descriptive and based on INIST data and experience. Findings - Resource sharing and networking in document delivery on a national and international level have become essential to maintain good quality services. Originality/value - The article focuses on INIST-CNRS, a leader in the document delivery market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: It seemed well-settled that Chinese law provided owners of search engines with safe harbor against unreasonable interference from copyright holders. But the judgment of IFPI v. Yahoo! shook this belief. This controversial judgment is related to the rather convoluted applicable legal rules, with joint infringement rules interweaved with the safe harbor provisions. To fully expose the scope of search engine provider''s liability and the legal issues of the Yahoo! China ruling in particular, this paper examines the Chinese provisions for joint infringement and liability for search engines, discusses all the Chinese “safe harbor” provisions, those in the Regulation RCIN, the Judiciary Interpretation for Digital Copyright and the Administrative Measures for Digital Copyright. Following this discussion, suggested errors in legal application in the Yahoo! China case are analyzed and a suggested right approach is argued. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Looking for new work alternatives for the information professionals, this paper describes the experience that has been obtained as a niche for professional opportunities was discovered when implementing, in several organizations in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, the diagnosis and development of fiscal- file-processing services. As an antecedent, it presents an analysis of the Mexican legislation related to the specifications for fiscal document processing and also analyzes the classification of the organizations who participate in this area as well as the documentation of processes. Acquired experiences are described, stating their advantages and disadvantages, taking into consideration this proposal from the perspective of the information professionals as well as the organizations themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses challenges faced by German libraries as a result of the German copyright law. The law makes it illegal for libraries to electronically deliver documents in PDF format without a requisite license. This law has made it necessary for many libraries to restructure their information technology systems and organize training for help desk and reference service employees.

The article focuses on the American and European legal perspective on network neutrality. It presents the definition of network neutrality, which is the provision of internet application or services by internet services providers, and the legal approaches of the U.S. and Europe to regulate its application. Moreover, it examines the legal infrastructure of the Access and Interconnection Directive in Europe and how the U.S. Wiretap Law and some privacy laws are affected by network neutrality.

Security threats over Internet have necessitated information security awareness among the users. Concern about information security is also on because of financial risks associated with it. Importance of safe computing practices being advocated by several governments, professional organisations, and individuals has impelled the need for secured commercial computer and application systems. Many countries have formulated cyber laws to protect their business, security, and user's rights and privacy and for educating people about their own and other countries cyber laws so that they do not have any problems relating to information security over Internet. The paper presents the result of a survey conducted to find out the general awareness of cyber laws and computer security among Singaporeans, covering a cross section of the computer users in the country. The paper shows that most of the participants of the survey were not able to actively keep themselves updated with the latest information related to computer security and this fact seems consistent across the different professions. Also, all the participants of the survey agreed on the need for ethics in the pervasive use of the Internet where problems in security, privacy enforcement and threats of viruses are obvious and cannot be avoided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on improving care for patients and minimizing costs of medical malpractice with the help of law and information technology (IT). According to the author, a useful malpractice reform needs a new direction which can be achieved by treating the disease instead of its symptoms. The use of healthcare IT as the basis of a different type of medical malpractice reform is also discussed.

This paper is the first in a series of two papers on Bradford's Law. This paper reviews the law in a simplified manner for the benefit of library and information science students and researchers, who might otherwise be put off by the usually highly mathematical exposition of the Law. The explanation is intended to set the stage for an interdisciplinary explanation of the Law in the second paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the provisions of the consumer credit information systems legislation in Italy in relation to the regulation of consumer credit reporting for other European Union countries. Credit Reference Agencies are private for-profit companies that compile databases to help lenders in assessing a consumer credit application. The advantages of credit reporting systems to financial systems are enumerated. The legislation seems to disregard credit reporting on the European context.

Summary: The aim of this article is to review the situation regarding legislation on library and information services, and in particular, the changes that have taken place over the past 20 years in French-speaking African countries. Our study concerns 24 African countries, located in North Africa (Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia), West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Togo), as well as East and Central Africa (Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Rwanda), Djibouti, the Comoros, Madagascar and Seychelles. The institutions examined in this study are primarily national libraries and documentation centres. Nevertheless, we will also look at legislative decisions affecting national information systems and public and university libraries, as well as some decisions governing the practice of the librarian profession. The main changes that took place over the past two decades concern the setting up of international Francophone institutions and the support provided to information and library infrastructures in developing countries. We also note a definite improvement in documentation systems, due largely to a greater priority placed on information and the action of professionals trained in library science faculties and colleges, who continue to promote the need for adequate legislation to ensure well-performing institutions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Chinese Information Law Database was built in the context of an absence of positive analysis in the field of information law. We analyzed the data in this database from several angles. This article systematically shows the fruits of the research and elaborates on the findings deriving from the research. In particular, the achievements and deficiencies in the construction of Chinese information laws and regulations are disclosed. Rapid development, large quantity and legislation diversity characterize the accomplishment, while the poor quality and lack of systematization, stability and continuity represent most of the drawbacks. In the last chapter of this paper, we propose some constructive countermeasures to improve the information legislation, which are also feasible in China. Establishing specific institutions and reinforcing government leadership and control, improving the process of enactment and execution of information laws and regulations, drawing on the legislative experience of developed countries for reference, and strengthening research into information law and regulating information jurisprudence are the most important measures described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of the digital environment has given way to the generalized online exploitation of intellectual works, so that licensing agreements are replacing sales as the habitual form of procuring access and use. This means that contract law acquires unprecedented relevance in publisher-user relations. The partial displacement of copyright law by contract law is not exempt from problems: through these licensing agreements libraries are being obligated, either by the absence of negotiation or the lack of balanced agreements, to renounce the enjoyment of copyright limitations and exceptions that benefit them, interfering with their important social role of helping citizens obtain information. The solutions to this problem can be found in three different yet complementary approaches: the constitution of consortia, greater information and training for professionals, and finally - and this is the focus of the analysis presented here - the modification of copyright law so that licences that stipulate against the most fundamental limitations and exceptions to copyright might be declared null and void, in the interest of maintaining a copyright equilibrium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the advocacy for a free enterprise approach to online profiling regulation. Technological advancements in data collection; Benefits and legal concerns of online data collection; Regulatory framework on profiling activities.

Comments on the Data Quality Act, a public information policy which was signed into law during the 106th U.S. Congress in December 2000. Details of the Section 515 of the Act; Intent of the law; Changes in government information dissemination.

Looks at the provisions of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) that information service managers must pay attention to. Core of the controversial portion of the CDA; Discussion on organizational liability; Number one defense against employee misuse of information systems.

Presents legal issues related to library and information services. Constitutionality of the US Communications Decency Act; Consideration of database copyrighting by the US Congress; Proposal of the World Intellectual Property Organization for copyright law changes; Conferences and investigations of public information issues.

Discusses the importance of the access to information to the historical profession in Canada and provides information on history conferences and events as of September 1985. Scope and application of the Access to Information Act of 1983; Procedure for accessing information from government offices; Celebration of the 75th anniversary of the navy; Symposiums sponsored by the Forest History Society.

What does the frequency of occurrence of different words in an article have to do with the number of times an article is cited? Or, for that matter, with the number of publications an author has? All of these-word frequency, citation frequency, and publication frequency-obey an ubiquitous distribution called Zipf's law. Zipf's law applies as well to such diverse subjects as income distribution, firm size, and biological genera and species. Zipf in 1949 described a hyperbolic rank-frequency word distribution, which he fitted to a number of texts. He stated that if all unique words in a text are arranged (or ranked) in order of decreasing frequency of occurrence, the product of frequency times rank yields a constant which is approximately equal for all words in a text. The law has been shown to encompass many natural phenomena, and is equivalent to the distributions of Yule, Lotka, Pareto, Bradford, and Price. An ubiquitous empirical regularity suggests some universal principal. This article examines a number of theoretical derivations of the law, in order to show the relationship between the many attempts at ascertaining a theoretical justification for the phenomenon. We then briefly examine some of the ramifications of applying the law to the bibliographic database environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents information on government regulations or legislation related to survey research industry. It is reported that "Bundesdatenschutzgesetz" is the law in the Federal Republic of Germany which protects data and protects the privacy of respondents. Privacy is defined as being a composite of basic personal data like religious and political views, financial information, and medical data. The data police monitor the gathering and distribution of data to ensure that data privacy is protected. This law has three other provisions. First, informed consent is required; the respondent must know the consequences of the interview. Second, respondents must agree in writing for researchers to store data. Third, data cannot be transferred without written permission from the respondent. The law in West Germany has not been fully enforced. If it were enforced, the research industry would certainly have hard times. Because the transfer and use of data would be strictly controlled, the link between clients and respondents would probably be more direct. The middleman roles for research companies and data collection agencies could be eliminated.