Issues in Electronic Communications - Essay Example

Running head: Electronic Communications Number: Due Electronic Communications Definition of terms According to Shannon (59), communication is the act of conveying message; it is therefore the transfer of information from one point to another through a channel. Electronic communication – according to Electronic Communication Privacy Act, ECPA, an "electronic communication" means any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic, photo electronic, or photo optical system that affects interstate or foreign commerce. Introduction With the advancement in technology, communication has over the years taken a new direction and adopted use of electronic media in the transmission and receiving of messages. However, the concept of electronic communication remains poorly understood by many people. This paper outlines categorically some examples that will help highlight the latter issue for ease of understanding. Basically, there are three types of electronic communications. These include: Simplex This is basically the simplest type of electronic communication and whereby transfer of messages is towards one direction at a time. In other words, the communication is one-way. Examples of such communication are: personal receiver (beeper), TV broadcasting and radio. Half duplex It’s a two way communication, but the message is transmitted by one party at a time. Examples of this include: police or military radio transmission, family radio, amateur radio etc. Full duplex This is the form in which most of the recent electronic communication adopts today. This is where people can transmit and receive messages simultaneously and a good example is the telephone. International policies or rules on electronic communication use A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy can be considered as a "Statement of Intent" or a "Commitment." For that reason at least, the decision-makers can be held accountable for their "Policy", (Paquette 200). Policies are therefore normally meant to ensure conformance with set objectives and in the case of electronic communication, one of the major issue of concern is privacy and security of communication. Electronic communication, unlike other forms of communication, poses great challenges to both the communicators and the communication service providers on how to ensure security of the messages. Another issue concerning use of electronic communication is its ability to bear legal value in that there have been issues on whether or not agreement reached using electronic communication can have evidential value (Madeline 198). There are, therefore, several policies governing use of electronic communication. One of the international policies on electronic communication is the New World Information Communication Order (NWICO). This is a UNESCO agency formed in the mid 1970s with the aim of bringing balance in world information flow (communication). NWICO was out to facilitate economic growth in the developing or third world countries by improving the communication system. According to it, free information flow encouraged economic development but was lacking in the developing countries. Among the demands made by NWICO are: balanced circulation of news, control over the means of communication, code of conduct to ensure unbiased reporting, development of national media to reflect national cultures and realities, improvement of the generation of information in the south and equal participation of the south in international information relations (Schiller 85). The argument here was that the countries in the north are more developed in terms of communication than those from the global south and therefore took dominance in the global communication system. It actually meant balance as well as freedom in world news and information flow (MacBride et al. 80). It is, for example, ironical to note that the whole of Africa has fewer telephone lines as compared to the city of Tokyo, Japan. In fact, according to UNDP (193), industrial countries as a whole have over 18 times more telephone lines per 100 people than all the developing countries. This order, therefore, affects electronic communication use at the international level in that it was meant to foster equitable development in the communication system between the global north and south and this would ultimately improve communication globally. Another convention governing use of electronic media is the United Nations Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts. This is a convention that is meant to foster electronic communication in the international trade. It is actually out to ensure that contracts entered into through the use of electronic communication areas are as valid as the ones entered into using the traditional communication such as letters or paper based. This is because certain adopted formal requirements in the international trade treaties may adversely affect the use of electronic communication in certain agreements. Some formal requirements contained in the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) are likely to pose obstacles in the use of electronic communication (Robert 199). The Convention sets out criteria for establishing the functional equivalence between electronic communications and paper documents as well as between electronic authentication methods and handwritten signatures (Art. 9). Similarly, the Convention defines the time and place of dispatch and receipt of electronic communications, tailoring the traditional rules for these legal concepts to suit the electronic context and innovating with respect to the provisions of the Model Law on Electronic Commerce (Art. 10) On the issue of privacy, the Electronic Communication Privacy Act (ECPA) is a policy governing the privacy of electronic communication especially in the business environment whereby confidentiality is key. This policy was enacted by the Congress around 1986 and ensures that neither public nor private entities can lawfully intrude a person’s electronic domain. It further enhances privacy of e-mails and electronic transmissions in that it treats e-mails and electronic communications as voice communication. In the case of e-mail, the e-mail data is temporarily stored in a router or in an Internet service provider’s system for a period sufficient to make it viewable or downloadable by unintended persons. The ECPA outlines rules governing access of information in the electronic format by both the government and also the service providers. Although at a glance the ECPA seems to protect the contents of electronic communications, it also offers some exception of disclosure of such content to some interceptions that are authorized. These exceptions cover "providers of wire or electronic communication service", who are to "provide information, facilities, or technical assistance to persons authorized by law to intercept wire, oral, or electronic communications or to conduct electronic surveillance...” under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (Barnlund 28). The interceptions also cover government entities in that they may be forced to obtain a certification from the attorney general or a court order to show that assistance of internet service provider (ISP) is needed, no warranty is required or all legal requirements are met. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) also affects the use of electronic communication. In the era of electronic communication, it is possible to convey messages in different format and as stated earlier, it is easier to infringe one’s intellectual property rights, (Ganley 19). WIPO is therefore an international organization that governs intellectual rights. The major part of the intellectual property rights that is affected by electronic communication is the copyright. WIPO therefore outlines the copyright act that gives the owners of copyright the right to reproduce, produce derivative works and perform publicly their works while at the same time denying other persons such rights. This affects electronic communication in that the content or the message or even the information conveyed should not infringe the copyright act, otherwise legal action can be taken against such persons. Take the example whereby a user finds some nice information on the Internet which is copyrighted and wishes to copy it and send it to somebody else. This is infringing the copyright act. There has, however, been challenging issues concerning the implementation of copyright in the electronic communication or digital era. There has been a controversy over who should be held liable in case of infringement of copyright in the digital environment or whereby electronic communication is concerned. There has been a disagreement on whether it’s the service provider or the user who should be held accountable in case of infringement (Green 98). On the other hand, temporary copying or caching has to be done in the access and sharing information in the Internet environment and therefore it’s difficult to implement copyright. Conclusion This paper brings out a logical explanation of electronic communication. The concept is, however, new and has not been very much adopted in the international arena. This is why there are few international policies and rules governing electronic communication. This is because technology is more advanced in countries in the global north than those in the global south. The effect of this is dominance even in the policy formulation. On the other hand, some policies like censorship are key as far as electronic communication is concerned, but there has not been a common censorship policy worldwide and the result is different censorship policies in different countries. There is, therefore, the need for more international policies and rules on electronic communication use in order to avoid the conflict which might result and also encourage privacy of the electronic channels of communication. Works Cited Barnlund, D. C. A Transactional Model of Communication. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction, 2008. Print. Berlo, D. K. The Process of Communication. New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston, 1960. Print. Ganley, Oswald. Ganley: To Inform or To Control. The New Communication. NY: Norwood, 1992. Print. Green, Green. Privacy and E-Communication on the Internet and in E-Data. Chicago: Kniff, 1998. Print. Henderson, Madeline. Electronic Communication: Technology and Impacts. New York: Westview Press, 1980. Print. MacBride, Sean, et al. Many Voices, One World. Paris: UNESCO, 1980. Print. Paquette, Laure. Analyzing National and International Policy. Rowman: Littlefield, 2002. Print. Schiller, Herbert. Information and the Crisis Economy. Norwood, NJ: Ablex, 1985. Print. Shrader, Robert. Electronic Communication. Lake Forest, Ill: McGraw-Hill, 1991. Print. Weaver, Shannon W. The mathematical theory of communication. Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1949. Print. Read More