fall 99 mngt 3862/99 james clark legal & tax aspects of e- commerce legal issues in e-comm...

Fall 99 Mngt 3862/99 James Clark

Legal & Tax aspects of E-Commerce

Legal Issues in E-comm Development of your web site Content of the Web Site Copyright Discussion Questions Tax & E-commerce Enforceability of On-line Contracts


What are the benefits and negative impacts of sharing Files? Does this apply to all kinds of files or just to MP# files

Should levies be put on recording medium


Legal Issues in E-comm Development of your web site

Content of the web site

Enforceability of on-line contracts


Development of your web site

Who’s site is it anyways? Developer’s or the organizations’

Get a written agreement What are you contracting for

Timeliness for completion What maintenance will be provided What warranties are being provided by

the developer Will developer host the web site?


Web site Specification Agreement Web site Design Agreement Web site Maintenance and

Operation Agreement General guidance notes


Who is able to make changes to the site?

Does developer have to be given permission for changes to be made?


Content of the Web Site

Copyright

Trademarks

Taxation


Copyright Quiz

If it doesn't have a copyright notice, it's not copyrighted.

If I don't charge for it, it's not a violation.

If it's posted to Usenet it's in the public domain.


Copyright Quiz

My posting was just fair use!

If you don't defend your copyright you lose it.

If I make up my own stories, but base them on another work, my new work belongs to me.


Copyright Quiz

They can't get me, defendants in court have powerful rights.

Oh, so copyright violation isn't a crime or anything?

It doesn't hurt anybody -- in fact it's free advertising.

They e-mailed me a copy, so I can post it.

So I can't ever reproduce anything?


Lester B. Thurow

The idea that people should be paid to be creative is a point of view that stems from the Judeo-Christian and Muslim belief in a God who created humankind in His image. It has no analogue in Hindu, Buddhist, or Confucian societies. There are real differences in beliefs about what should be freely available in the public domain and what should be for sale in the private marketplace.

Lester Thurow, HBR 9-10/97


Copyright Law

Enable author/creator of original or artistic work to commercially exploit:

Build a reputational reward

Extract monetary reward


Copyright Issues

Private vs Social Benefits

Innocent vs Willful Violation

Global Environments

Digital worlds – Web Culture


Copyright Basics Protects “original works” of all sorts Idea & facts cannot be copyrighted,

only original way it is expressed Copyright can be dedicated to public

domain Copyright holder holds exclusive rights

to: Copy, distribute, sell, license, transfer of

any kind Owning digital copy vs owning rights


CopyrightCanada/U.S. – Most Other

Countries

Resides with author/company at the moment of fixation

life + 70 (author)/95 (corporation) Copyright is implied

( C, 1999 James Clark) not required but important in Marketspace. Necessary for full recovery in case of infringement

Registration – not required necessary before beginning an

infringement action


Copyright Rights Exceptions

Implied license Fair use “De Minimus” copying Public Domain Granted license Work for hire

Canada vs U.S.


Copyright conclusion

Beware putting up critical or proprietary material

Know the copyright status of material on your Web site ( civil law not criminal law)

When in doubt ask the owners permission Free, pay refusal, replace or delete


Discussion Questions I

What is different about copyright law in the realm of electronic commerce?

In browsing the web, you find a site that you

know will be of great value to your customers. Is it lawful for you to put a "hot link" to that site inside your website, and promote that to your customers?


Discussion Questions II

You find a site that could be valuable to your customers. You create a frame on your website which links to this information & pulls it into your website so that you may create a context around it especially for your customers. Is this legal under copyright law? How would you proceed in this situation? What are some steps that you should take?

Your professor likes to "spice up" her lectures by inserting a wide variety of cartoons. Dilbert is among her favorites. Is this considered "fair use?" Is it "right?"


Discussion Questions III An employee creates a short story about how your company works.

It’s so flattering you’d like to broadcast it to your top five customers. How should you proceed?

Your company has created a process for analyzing marketing problems-a step-by-step approach-which produces unique, step function productivity gains wherever you try it. An employee has suggested posting this process on the web, as a way of creating interest in your firm, & attracting new customers for your services. You know this service is very valuable. How would you proceed?

In scanning the web, you find a site that has information which you know will be of great value to your customers. Is it ok by law for you to put a "hot link" to that site inside your website, and promote that to your customers?


Tax & E-commerce Jingle

If you drive a car I’ll tax the streetIf you try to sit, I’ll tax the seatIf you get to cold, I’ll tax the heatIf you take a walk, I’ll tax your feet

George Harrison “ the Tax Man”


Tax & E-commerce

Digital commerce taxation

challenges Intangibility Distance Insensitivity Uncertain destination Transaction anonymity


Canadian view of Taxation & Tarriffs WTO members agreed to refrain from

applying customs duties on the electronic products & services delivered electronically until 1999


Enforceability of On-line Contracts .

Media-neutrality of statutes

Evidence rules for electronic records

Recognition of electronic signatures

Liability

Corporate and competition laws


A PROFESSOR'S LECTURES FOR AN ON-LINE LAW

SCHOOL BECOME AN ISSUE AT HARVARD


http://www2.smeal.psu.edu/courses/mktg597d.rangaswamy/

Life long learning

fall 99 mngt 3862/99 james clark legal & tax aspects of e- commerce legal issues in e-comm...

Documents