DialAmerica Marketing, Inc. is a telephone-marketing firm that operates in twenty states and maintains its principal place of business in Teaneck, New Jersey. A major aspect of DialAmerica's business is the sale of magazine renewal subscriptions by telephone to persons whose subscriptions have expired or ready to run out. They located subscribers' phone numbers by employing in-house researchers who would find numbers by consulting telephone books and calling directory-assistance or operators. The researcher would travel to DialAmerica's office in Teaneck and pick up cards, which contained the name and address of a subscriber whose telephone number was needed.…
Legislative Proposal for New Indecency Language in Telecom Bill I. Summary Although the October 16, 1995 legislative proposal purports to regulate " computer pornography", the proposal contains fatal flaws which render the proposal at best counterproductive and at worst devastating to on-line communications. First, it prohibits, but fails to define, "indecent" speech to minors -- a dangerously vague, medium-specific, and, after decades of litigation, still undefined concept, which may include mere profanity. This may tie up successful prosecution of the law in courts for years to come, while courts wrestle to divine a constitutional definition of "indecent" -- and while companies are left with uncertain liability.…
The RLA has basic concepts: avoid any interruption to commerce; ensure an unhindered right of employees to join labor union, which was added in 1934; provide complete independence of organization by both parties to carry out the purpose of the RLA. The Norrsi-Laguardia Act (NLA) assist in the prompt and orderly settlement of disputes covering of pay, work rules, or working conditions; assist in the prompt and orderly settlement of disputes growing out of grievances or out of the interpretation or application of existing contracts covering the rates of pay, work rules or working conditions. The NLRA, also known as the Wagner Act, the purpose is to protect the rights of employees, support collective bargaining, and put an end to the abusive practices…
EB.com (2011) Sherman Antitrust Act [Internet], Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. Available from: [Accessed 8 December 2011]…
By about 2000, cable TV companies were in a technical position to offer triple play over one physical medium to a large number of their customers, as their networks already have sufficient bandwidth to carry hundreds of video channels. Cable's main competition for television in North America came from satellites, which cannot compete for voice and interactive broadband due to the latency imposed by physical laws on a geosynchronous satellite—sometimes up to one full second of delay between speaking and being heard. Cable's main competition for voice and Internet access came from Telco’s, which were not yet able to compete for television in most markets because DSL over most local loops could not provide enough bandwidth.…
Influences at play in the early 1990s were only augmented when Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996, allowing “competitive distribution technologies…to compete with traditional cable and direct satellite broadcast in what had been an exclusive industry;” as a result, the industry engaged in a frenzy of investment and consolidation. Operators with the means began to upgrade their networks to provide high-speed Internet, telephony, and digital cable via broadband, as well as value-added services like video-on-demand and interactive TV; those left out were forced to consolidate or face elimination. Consequently, the top eight cable operators went from controlling approximately 53% of the industry in 1990, to 79% in 2001.…
Have you ever been sitting at home relaxing when the phone rings and it is a telemarketer on the other line trying to sell you something? You didn’t reach out to the company on the other line prompting this intrusion. Most of the time, you don’t even want the product they are selling. This is an issue that has plagued millions of people across the United States since the mid-to-late eighties when businesses started using the telephone in order to market and sell their products. Two Acts in particular have been passed in order to help battle telemarketers and maintain residencies’ privacy when it comes to the telephone.…
In the article entitled, This is why the government should never control the internet, former commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Robert M.…
On February 26, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission passed the Title II Net Neutrality rules. These rules will be enforced by the FCC and will protect the American people when it comes to the use of the Internet. Some people say that this is a major part of history because of the way the Internet has changed and enriched lifestyles. Research suggests that Net Neutrality will benefit all Internet users because it protects consumers against blocking of content, prevents throttling of all traffic, prevents favoritism to certain interests, and insures the customer's safety from prioritizing any specific content or traffic. These rules apply to all fixed and wireless internet providers in the United States, and Net Neutrality and its…
Pember, D. R., & Clavert, C. (2011). Mass media law (17th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.…
Chances are you have probably come across HIPPA before while in a doctor’s office in the past. HIPPA is the acronym for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This Act was passed by Congress in 1996. As far as one can remember, medical files containing all medical and personal information were kept in locked drawers or file cabinets which were for authorized personnel’s only before HIPPA was passed but that was not enough to guarantee the protection of patient information. It also protects the people who have changed job or lost their job to reinstate their health coverage without any complications. Although HIPPA was proposed to become a law in 1996, it did not officially become a law until 2001. HIPAA opposes unfair guidelines of health insurance carries. HIPAA has put into place strict criteria for keeping medical records of patients, including being able to transfer patient information using electronic devices. These devices also assist in managing and keeping sensitive patient information safe. There were many hoops to jump through, however, it was eventually decided and was released to the general public.…
Today, there are many laws that address different acts of computer crimes. It is very important to understand what laws are applicable in a given situation. The law I have selected is the “no electronic theft act of 1997.” The no electronic theft act is also known as the net act, it came into law under presidents Clinton in 1997. This was used to protect against copyright violations on the Internet. The law makes it a federal crime to reproduce, distribute, or share copies of electronic copyrighted work. As such it is a crime to distribute copyrighted material even if it is done without financial gain. The law also requires that the commission of the crime be willful and that the total value of the copyrighted material exceeds $1000. There also is a five-year statute of limitations, meaning that the crime must be charged and prosecuted within five years of his commission. The net act also makes it a federal crime to record live performances without permission and further distribute the recordings.…
The issue of new technology transmitting information was first seen in the International News Service v. The Associated Press case in 1918. Both parties were wire services that transmitted news to member newspapers. INS was lifting stories from AP and using them in INS newspapers. The Supreme Court ruled that INS was misappropriating AP’s property.…
“The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was created when Congress passed the Communications Act in 1934 which abolished the Federal Radio Commission and transferred jurisdiction of radio licensing to the Federal Communications Commission. This also included the telecommunications jurisdiction which was previously handled by the Interstate Commerce Commission. The Communications Act focused on telecommunications by using concepts borrowed from the railroad legislation and contained provisions very similar to the Radio Act of 1927” (www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Communications_Commission).…
Children are our society’s most valuable and fragile resources. It is our responsibility as parents, adults, and caregivers to provide our children with as many safeguards to protect them from physical and virtual dangers. Children are spending more and more time on the internet and without the proper protection and supervision they can be exposed to indecent or harmful material or predators that seek to harm them. “What children are encountering on the Internet, particularly in terms of indecent or otherwise unsuitable material or contacts with strangers who intend to do them harm, is an issue of major concern.” (Smith, 2001). The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) of 2000 and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) of 1998 were put in place as an attempt to protect our children from the harm that could befall them on the internet from harmful materials and predators that target children.…