Telecommunications Law in the Internet Age

Telecommunications law is a subject that needs clear synthesis and focus as the picture shifts to reveal a new global telecom market. Sharon Black has undertaken the remarkable task of demystifying this area of the law and explaining the key issues that affect businesses and individuals at the state, national, and international level. This book should be on the shelves of anyone who is interested in the rights, obligations, and policies governing modern communications.

-- Brent Alderfer, President, Community Energy, Inc., and former Public Utility Commissioner

Sharon Black's book provides a broad treatment of law related to the new telecommunications industry. Practicing professionals should consider this an essential reference to be effective in this dynamic industry.

-- Martin Weiss, Chairman of the Department of Information Science and Telecommunications, University of Pittsburgh

For companies in and around the telecommunications field, the past few years have been a time of extraordinary change-technologically and legally. The enacting of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and the development of international trade agreements have fundamentally changed the environment in which your business operates, creating risks, responsibilities, and opportunities that were not there before.

Until now, you'd have had a hard time finding a serious business book that offered any more than a cursory glance at this transformed world. But at last there's a resource you can depend on for in-depth analysis and sound advice. Written in easy-to-understand language, Telecommunications Law in the Internet Age systematically examines the complex interrelationships of new laws, new technologies, and new business practices, and equips you with the practical understanding you need to run your enterprise optimally within today's legal boundaries.

Features

• Offers authoritative coverage from a lawyer and telecommunications authority who has been working in the field for over three decades.
• Examines telecommunications law in the U.S., at both the federal and state level.
• Presents an unparalleled source of information on international trade regulations and their effects on the industry.
• Covers the modern telecommunications issues with which most companies are grappling: wireless communication, e-commerce, satellite systems, privacy and encryption, Internet taxation, export controls, intellectual property, spamming, pornography, Internet telephony, extranets, and more.
• Provides guidelines for preventing inadvertent violations of telecommunications law.
• Offers guidance on fending off legal and illegal attacks by hackers, competitors, and foreign governments.
• Helps you do more than understand and obey the law: helps you thrive within it.

Authors:

Sharon Black is an international telecommunications attorney and consultant with 30 years of industry experience. She was the first person in the U.S. to earn an M.S. in telecommunications, graduating in 1972 from the University of Colorado's Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program in the Department of Electrical Engineering. She holds an undergraduate degree in international economics from the University of Colorado and a law degree from the University of Denver.

Black has served as a telecommunications policy analyst for the U.S. Department of Commerce and an analyst, network designer, manager, and vice president of telecommunications in the financial services industry. For her accomplishments, she has been honored by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Telecommunications (now NTIA), and various national industry organizations. She is the author of numerous telecommunications and law articles and has taught telecommunications courses for Telecommunications Research Associates and the University of Colorado.

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1 - IntroductionThe New Telecommunications Environment

Part I The New Competitive Telecommunications Environment

Chapter 2 - Competition and Regulationa Continuing Telecommunications Cycle
Chapter 3 - The Telecommunications Act of 1996
Chapter 4 - Outstanding Issues from the Telecommunications Act of 1996

Part II Embracing the Expanded Global Telecommunications Market

Chapter 5 - The World Trade Organization and Its Telecommunications-Related Agreements
Chapter 6 - Participating in Global Telecommunications Trade: U.S. Import and Export Laws
Chapter 7 - Licensing to Protect Telecommunications Intellectual Property

Part III Legal Issues With Advanced Technologies

Chapter 8 - Privacy
Chapter 9 - Encryption
Chapter 10 - Cyberlaw: Evolving Legal Issues with the Internet

Appendix A - Key Documents and Decisions Concerning Local Number Portability
Appendix B - Key Documents and Decisions Concerning Universal Service
Appendix C - Key Documents and Decisions Concerning Access and Reciprocal Compensation
Appendix D - Legal Instruments Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round
Appendix E - Membership of the World Trade Organization
Appendix F - Commitments and Most Favored Nation Exemptions
Appendix G - Chapters within Title 19 of the U. S. Code Customs Duties
Appendix H - State Privacy Laws
Appendix I - Resources to Detect and Delete Cookies
Appendix J - State Laws Concerning Encryption, Key Escrow, and Digital Signatures
Index

Related Titles:

Computer & Communication Networks