Beyond Our Control?

This book provides a framework for thinking about the law and cyberspace, examining
the extent to which the Internet is currently under control and the extent to which it can or should
be controlled. It focuses in part on the proliferation of MP3 file sharing, a practice made possible
by the development of a file format that enables users to store large audio files with near-CD sound
quality on a computer. By 1998, software available for free on the Web enabled users to copy
existing digital files from CDs. Later technologies such as Napster and Gnutella allowed users to
exchange MP3 files in cyberspace without having to post anything online. This ability of online
users to download free music caused an uproar among music executives and many musicians, as well as
a range of much-discussed legal action.Regulation strategies identified and discussed include
legislation, policy changes, administrative agency activity, international cooperation,
architectural changes, private ordering, and self-regulation. The book also applies major regulatory
models to some of the most volatile Internet issues, including cyber-security, consumer fraud, free
speech rights, intellectual property rights, and file-sharing programs.