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This chapter provides a discussion of what has become known as media naturalness theory, a theory of communication media with a special focus on electronic communication, and developed based on human evolutionary principles. The theory is centered on the media naturalness hypothesis, which argues that, other things being equal, a decrease in the degree of naturalness of a communication medium (or its degree of similarity to the face-to-face medium) leads to the following effects in connection with a communication interaction: (a) increased cognitive effort, (b) increased communication ambiguity, and (c) decreased physiological arousal. It is argued here that the media naturalness hypothesis has important implications for the selection, use and deployment of e-communication tools in organizations. Unlike some previously proposed technology-centric theories, the media naturalness theory is compatible with social theories of behaviour toward electronic communication tools. Among other things, this chapter shows that the media naturalness theory is compatible with the notion that, regardless of the obstacles posed by low naturalness media, individuals using those media to perform collabourative tasks may achieve the same or better task-related outcomes than individuals using media with higher degrees of naturalness.

Electronic communications and energy are two sectors that are subject to detailed regulatory regimes set out at the European Union (EU) level. They are applied by sectoral national regulatory authorities (NRAs) and coordinated by sectoral network agencies (the Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications (BEREC) and the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) respectively). These NRAs apply rules with regard to third party access that are based on competition law principles. Simultaneously, general competition law applies in parallel and has been used especially by the EU Commission to promote a liberalization agenda. This chapter looks at the relationship, similarities and differences between the two types of regime (general and specific).

This chapter explores consumer protection in the telecommunications sector, taking a participatory and fundamental rights perspective. An introductory section describes how the EU policy in this area is slowly shifting from a competition-centred approach, to a stronger consumer-citizen focus, giving increasing importance to consumers’ access to universal services and to empowerment. The second section explores the role played by fundamental rights in this evolution, as for example the rights to information and to privacy are strengthened. ECJ case studies are then applied to exemplify the conflicts that may emerge between the consumers’ fundamental rights and other fundamental rights (such as the right to property), suggesting that a delicate balance will need to be drawn between these equally important rights. The third and final section analyses new tools to strengthen the regulatory involvement of consumers; for example, regulatory consultation mechanisms and the European Citizens’ Initiative.

The Ivory Coast's electronic communications system is very strong. This is manifested through the early introduction of a telecommunications industry; the practical application of that industry; and the dominance of regional and local radio stations, telegraphs, and national television channels. All of this was eventually followed by the establishment of a sound international connections infrastructure. In the advent of technological penetration, equipment was installed in locations where raw materials were readily available. To date, most of the supplies have come from Western countries, especially France. Just after the colonial period, the telecommunications facilities of the Ivory Coast spread out, and became diversified and modernized. However, its management has always been under state monopoly and state administration rules. Policy modifications are suggested in this chapter in order to enhance the quality of domestic access, minimize invoicing errors, eradicate fraud and nonpayment of bills, and encourage effective transmission of information.

This chapter examines the legal protections provided to the user by the U.S. Constitution and recent legislation. It discusses the evolution of Fourth Amendment protection, with an emphasis on the increasingly problematic distinction between content and context. It also covers the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA), and the PATRIOT Act.

The chapter examines the impact of statute on Internet governance by contract. It first provides examples of Internet-related matters that have been the subject of intensive statutory regulation, focusing upon relevant international agreements. It then examines several areas in which statutory norms are in tension with the ability of contracting parties to determine freely the terms and conditions of their contractual arrangement. In doing so, it highlights possible shifts in power between contractual freedom and statute. Finally, the chapter considers the prospects for introducing a new international statutory overlay that dramatically reduces the role of contract in the field.

This chapter explores the nature of cellular convergence—the convergence of virtually all personal electronic communication onto a single device, the cellular platform. It begins with a brief history of the evolution of the handset from an extremely large and cumbersome device dedicated to (limited) voice communication to today's smartphones. It then discusses the increasing importance of smartphones in the world of politics, with an emphasis on the empowerment of the individual. Next, it briefly considers the issue of the cell phone as a surveillance technology.

This chapter is intended to raise broad issues about the nature and purpose of general music education. Although it is grounded in an empirically observable phenomenon, it goes far beyond scientifically validated data in an attempt to locate the phenomenon it observes within a broad historical and cultural context. Music education in schools cannot function effectively without an implicit agreement between stakeholders about what it is for. The ‘meaning of music’ is a constantly shifting function of the discourses of these diverse groups, which may coalesce around a ‘dominant ideology’ which gains enough inter-group consensus to generate a stable educational agenda. It may be no longer possible to muster stakeholder consensus around any version of the educational enterprise which prioritises the classical canon. Strong cultural forces have been at work which account for the collapse of this consensus. This chapter identifies seven such forces: multiculturalism, youth culture, electronic communication, feminism, secularism, niche cultures, and postmodernism.

This chapter explains the practical mechanisms by which evangelical organizations expanded their reach. It talks about many scholars of Christianity that have attributed the global expansion of evangelicalism to “new technology” without adequately demonstrating how technological innovations made evangelical Christianity appealing to its new adherents throughout the world. The chapter also illuminates the strategic approach of U.S. evangelical organizations in using electronic communications to spread the gospel. It shows how individuals and local communities abroad interacted with Christian media and details how evangelicals throughout the world came to view themselves as members of a transnational community of believers by the early 1980s. It examines the interplay of religious and political beliefs that underpinned the push for overseas evangelism, the technological mechanisms that fostered evangelical internationalism, and the scriptural interpretations that informed evangelical notions about human rights and the role that the United States should play in the world.

This chapter tells the story of how in the early 1970s the Allende administration in Chile engaged Stafford Beer (1926–2002) to design and develop a revolutionary electronic communication system in which voters, workplaces, and the government were to be linked together by a kind of “socialist internet.” This was known as Project Cybersyn, and nothing like it had been tried before, or has been tried since.

A business rescue in insolvency can be achieved in two ways: by either selling the business (usually an asset sale transferring the business as a going concern) or restructuring the business. Both options require cooperation—often within the parties of proceedings (creditors, debtor, management), but also with outsiders (investors, customers). Here, the need for cooperation in case of a sale is fairly limited in most jurisdictions because selling the business is simply a way to liquidate the debtor’s assets which may only require a qualified purchaser and a confirmation by a court or even by an administrator (usually an insolvency practitioner; see Chapter 7 for more details). Much more cooperation is usually required where a business must be restructured. If a plan does not only provide for the adjustment of old debt and security rights (financial restructuring), but also for an adjustment of vital credit lines, supply or employment contracts (operational restructuring), a larger number of stakeholders must be brought together.

Many lawyers and judges are uneasy when speaking about technology. They bemoan the jargon of technologists, oblivious to the irony that legal experts are greatly superior purveyors of jargon. One of the difficulties here is that technology can be discussed at different levels. When some people talk about technology, for example, they are discussing particular systems that they use, packages and apps, such as PowerPoint and Twitter. This is not a book about packages and apps. Others speak about more general, enabling technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, natural language processing, and blockchain. I say quite a lot about various enabling technologies in the pages that follow because a failure to grasp their impact is to fail to grasp how court service is likely to change.