4 11 November 2002

News:

Reuters has rejected claims by Swedish software maker Intentia that the news agency hacked into the software company’s website to obtain confidential information about the company’s earnings.

The United States Department of Justice has made clear that the Administration’s policy on online gambling, of all types, is outright prohibition rather than regulation. In a speech on November 20 in London at the Special Briefing on Money Laundering and Online Payment Systems, organised by World Online Gambling Law Report, John G. Malcolm, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Criminal Division, US Department of Justice, said: “the United Kingdom has opted to regulate the online gaming industry. The United States has taken a different approach, opting instead to prohibit on-line gambling”.

In a landmark ruling, Internet Service Provider, Freeserve has been given leave to appeal against Oftel’s rejection of its complaint concerning anti-competitive behaviour decision by BT Openworld

Features:

When democratic governments try to prohibit activities which a majority, or a substantial minority, of the population view as legitimate, not only do they not succeed, they create more profound problems than those they were originally trying to solve.

Since their introduction in the ‘80s, premium rate services have been widely used by businesses offering premium entertainment and information to callers. Yet while the industry is largely run by responsible businesses, it has always had its fair share of problems. Scams, such as campaigns persuading people to call for non-existing mystery gifts, have been widely publicised.

As e-commerce expands and more and more businesses go online, the virtual world is becoming an established part of our society. Principles of equality are an accepted part of ‘bricks and mortar’ society. Do the same principles apply in the virtual world?

The more successful your website, the more attractive the site becomes to those who wish to piggy back off your success. Unauthorised pop up adverts which appear when someone visits your site, sometimes promoting a direct competitor, are a growing problem. This article looks at the legal remedies available to address this issue and the more familiar issues surrounding deep linking.

The development of online public services is an ambition of governmnets around the world. This article looks at the progress in the UK towards achieving their target of 100% of public services to be delivered online by 2005.

In a landmark ruling, Internet Service Provider Freeserve has been given leave to appeal against Oftel’s rejection of its complaint concerning anti-competitive behaviour decision by BT Openworld.

On 11 November 2002, the Competition Commission Appeals Tribunal (CCAT), in a preliminary ruling, gave Freeserve the go-ahead to challenge the rejection by Oftel of various complaints of alleged anti-competitive behaviour by BT in the marketing of its BT Openworld ISP.

This article discusses the wider implications of the decision for both the telecoms sector and the way in which regulatory practice is governed in future.

In the December 2001 issue of e-commerce law & policy, the authors considered the state of broadband access in the UK, the situation in two other EU G7 countries (Germany and France) and what the future might hold for broadband access, in particular how regulation and government policy might continue to be used to stimulate supply and demand for broadband services. The conclusion was that the UK was lagging behind other European G7 countries and had some catching up to do. This article analyses the progress that has been made in the last 12 months, and looks forward to what may happen in the future.