ch. 2: regulating and governing the internet should we impose limits on the flow of information in...
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Ch. 2: Regulating and Governing the Internet
• Should we impose limits on the flow of information in cyberspace?
• Implementing restrictions:– Challenge:
Origins of the Networkpp. 29-31
• Original aim:– “Survivable communications”
• Packets, packet switching– Labeled w/ origin, destination, sequence info for
reassembling at destination– Donald Davies (beginning thru 2:09):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tT4AaelwvV4 – Why is the data broken up into packets? • for Queuing (@ 1:53 in video)
Origins of the Network cont’d
• First large-scale packet switching network was ARPANET. – Initial goal: resource sharing.– Usage discovery: electronic mail• The idea of using a network to bring people together
• ARPANET and Milnet: interconnected• “A network of networks” was born – the
Internet– The “death of distance”
The Internet’s Architecture
• TCP/IP– Protocol: set of rules for communications• IP
– IP address: nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn (0-255)
• TCP– Packeting– Routers: packet switches
• NSPs
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyosOGHOBHA
Distinctive features:
• Trait of openness
• Asynchronous
• Many-to-many communications
• Distributed
• Scalable• Pp. 32-33
Facets of the Modern Internet
• WWW– Multimedia– Hypertext linking– Accessible html and http– A move to the semantic
web for coding, xml
• Pp. 33-38
• E-commerce– Trade– More products available
to the consumer– Customization– Models
• B2C• C2B• B2B• C2C
Facets cont’d
• Social Networking– Communication tools, sharing of info– See pp. 38-39 for an overview if unfamiliar– Challenges: monetizing web traffic & privacy– Ease of sharing info leads to problems
• Child porn, predators, bullying, stalking, sexting
– Should these sites be liable for the illegal activities of their users? • For the US, the Communications Decency Act §230c applies• Other countries often do not have laws to protect service
providers.– See case studies: L’Affair Yahoo and A Case of Libel pp. 50-54
Social problems of the Internet
• Erosion of privacy• Perverted forms of
speech• Illegitimate copying of
music and video files• Transaction fraud• Hackers
Regulating the Problems
• Lessig’s 4 Constraints on Behavior1. Laws2. Social Norms3. Market4. Code / Architecture
• Other considerations:– Social costs: borne involuntarily by others• Ex. Privacy
Approaches:
• Invisible hand: let it self-correct. Often best in situations where all the variables are not known/understood
– Avoids the problem of capture• “a process whereby those being regulated influence
regulators so hat they no longer act in the public interest”– Funny aside:
http://motherjones.com/media/2010/06/mark-fiore-voluntary-regulation
Approaches: cont’d
• Visible hand: regulate it• Difficulties inherent in Internet regulation:– Open architecture designed for sharing
• John Gilmore: “Information can take so many alt routes when one node is removed that the Net is almost immortally flexible … the Net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it.” p. 42
– Digital content difficult to contain– Jurisdiction is based on geography, Internet has no
boundaries.– Do we net Net/tech specific laws?
Internet Regulation and Ethics
• A mix of approaches is likely• The effectiveness of code to control behavior.• The need for regulation to consider autonomy,
privacy and security– Embracing values for human flourishing p. 50
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