Postgraduate Course: Communications, networks, and the law (LAWS11311)
Course Outline
| School | School of Law |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course covers the regulation of communications networks and services, from the early regulation of telegraph projects, through the regulation and liberalisation of telecommunications law over the course of the 20th century, to the present-day, EU-led system for electronic communications. Attention is paid to the major regulatory agencies, including domestic (Ofcom in the UK, the Federal Communications Commission in the US), European Union, and international (International Telecommunications Union). The course explores a range of legal and policy questions, including price control, social and universal service obligation, separation and new entry, technological neutrality (e.g. between wired and wireless), cross-border agreements, and consumer protection. The interaction between communications law and other forms of regulation (e.g. competition, media, trade) is explored, as are perspectives on the communications industries from other disciplines, particularly the relationship between law and innovation. |
| Course description |
1. Telecommunications law (historical development of telegraph/telephone industries)
2. Electronic communications law (liberalisation and technological change)
3. European Union I (free movement of services)
4. EU II (2002 and 2009 Directives in detail)
5. Consumers (universal service, pricing, roaming)
6. International law (ITU and WTO)
7. Internet regulation
8. The medium and the message (e.g. PRS and net neutrality)
9. Relationship between communications law and other provisions
10. The future
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
Course Delivery Information
|
| Academic year 2014/15, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 25 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
|
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
80% essay (4000 words)
20% other written assignment (1500 words, submission of a 'response' as part of a mock stakeholder consultation process). |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- By the end of the module students should:
1. have a deeper understanding of the legal issues arising in the communications industry (including user/consumer perspectives);
2. appreciate the limits on administrative action in the UK and elsewhere;
3. be able to engage in debate as to the type of regulatory measures appropriate for different forms of communication, and
4. comprehend the role of international law ("hard" and "soft") for this field.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | networks, telecommunications, regulation, Internet, ITU |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Daithi Mac Sithigh
Tel: (0131 6)50 9510
Email: Daithi.Mac.Sithigh@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Ginny Spencer
Tel: (0131 6)51 4246
Email: Ginny.Spencer@ed.ac.uk |
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© Copyright 2014 The University of Edinburgh - 12 January 2015 4:17 am
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