February 2006
4 posts
An orphan works affirmative defense
I have co-authored a paper on orphan copyrights that is now out from the Michigan Telecommunications and Technology Law Review. You can get it here (PDF). In the article we define the orphan works problem and show how it interferes with the use of creative works. We also describe the causes and costs of the problem, critique four of the leading proposed solutions, and propose a new and practical...
Tollbooths on the Internet Highway?
Yesterday the New York Times had an editorial about network neutrality. They employed a great analogy: “When someone calls your home, the telephone company puts through the call without regard to who is calling. In the same way, Internet service providers let Web sites operated by eBay, CNN or any other company send information to you on an equal footing.” They conclude, however, that...
Study: Franchising costs consumers over $10...
Jerry Ellig and I have been working on a study of cable franchising for the Mercatus Center that looks at the cost of franchising to consumers and what the FCC, Congress, and the states can and should do about it. Yesterday we released the bulk of it as a comment to the FCC’s franchising proceeding and as testimony to the Senate Commerce Committee, which will hold a hearing on the issue...
Is Verizon a network hog?
I’m still trying to wrap my head around all the intricacies of the net neutrality debate. The latest twist is a report that Verizon plans to reserve 80% of the capacity of its network for its video service. This has prompted some to argue that Verizon is skewing the Net.
Leading Net companies say that Verizon’s actions could keep some rivals off the road. As consumers try to search...
