European Regulatory Challenges for Developing Digital Content Services in Modern Electronic Communications Platforms
I. Chochliouros, S. Chochliouros, A. Spiliopoulou · IGI Global eBooks · 2011
The European Union (EU) has recently applied a more proactive and consistent regulatory approach in the wider electronic (mainly Internet-based) communications areas, also including a variety of modern broadcasting activities, aiming to promote their strategic and commercial importance. New requirements imposed by the converged information society technologies are currently demanding high-performance access and high-quality facilities (or services) for the benefits of all market actors involved (both for operators-providers and consumers). More specifically, the continuous expansion of the Internet creates considerable potential for growth, in terms of market and business activities. The latter, however, indicate that different and adequate forms of “content” should be legally available for use, treatment, storage and distribution in various technological platforms, operated from the private and the public sectors. The proposed chapter deals with the major European regulatory challenges for the development and the effective provision either of audio-visual or of other forms of digital content services, in parallel with other important issues (intellectual property rights and copyright, digital rights management, privacy issues, consumers’ interests, e-commerce, etc.). Content is a crucial factor in the digital economy, and plays a key role both economically and socially.Request access from your librarian to read this chapter's full text.