session 12. challenges and opportunities for contemporary media law.

The changing media landscape, locally and globally, brings with it certain challenges and opportunities for law and for media law in particular. As we could repeatedly see, it is very often the case that the toolbox of media regulation has not been yet adjusted (or not appropriately adjusted) to the changed (and changing) environment of 'old' and digital media, of convergence, of new patterns of business and consumer behaviour and new modes of cultural content production, distribution and access.
There is a host of topics that would qualify as falling under the broad category of challenges and opportunities to media law. We will only be able to tackle a tiny bit of those.
With the purpose of balancing the overall contents of the course and addressing some issues that were not sufficiently discussed until now, we would take up some of the themes in the domain of copyright and at the intersection of intellectual property and media law. We will pay specific attention to the processes of expanding copyright at the national, regional and global levels, and at the so-called copyright wars against the so-called piracy. In this context, we will discuss what the repercussions of expanded copyright may be and whether creativity and innovation as the ultimate goals of intellectual property protection are properly served. We will also look at alternative ways of protecting authors' rights such as the creative commons licence, as well as at initiatives that pursue to set limits to the ever expanding copyright.
A case that could well exemplify the current state of the debates is the Google Book Settlement and we'll make use of it to situate our analysis in the broader framework of media, access to knowledge and media regulation meant to serve the public interest.

Optional reading:
Neil W. Netanel, Why Has Copyright Expanded? Analysis and Critique

Here are the slides of session 12.

session 11. regulation for cultural diversity? pros and cons.

The time for the second interactive session has come. We will discuss a topic that we already touched upon in many ways, namely: whether it is justified and in fact doable to regulate for the protection and promotion of cultural diversity? These questions are asked against the background of a globalized media landscape, where we observe the emergence and use of multiple platforms and channels for expression and communication.
Yet, it could be argued that many voices have been marginalized in this environment and local cultures, especially in developing countries, are increasingly lost or (mis)appropriated by powerful globally positioned media companies. On the other hand, one could argue that digital media could make the expression and distribution of such local voices possible and strengthen their cultural value and the identity of the communities and peoples creating them.
It is certain that the picture to be painted is complex and not one of black and white. This makes the discussion particularly interesting and leaves the outcome open. The winning party will be ultimately the one with better structured and presented arguments.

The rules of the game remain the same.
You have however the advantage that you already heard the presentations of your colleagues during the first interactive session, as well as my comments on them.

The reading materials are few. They encompass basically the texts from last session, especially the first one on the list.
Those texts may have a slight bias towards arguments against cultural diversity regulation. Nonetheless, the other party arguing for cultural diversity regulation can make a strong case too. The lack of flexibilities within the WTO regime and the total disregard of cultural concerns are certainly the starting point there. The proliferation of mainstream content and homogenization of media outlets possibly another good point to make. Also, the text of the Convention itself and other short documents made available on the thematic page of UNESCO on culture can help you win the case.
Optional reading with some good data is a chapter from the UNESCO World Report on Cultural Diversity.

I wish both parties good luck for the preparations and look forward to an interesting discussion.

session 10. media globalization and its discontents.

After the hard work done in getting to know the law of the WTO, this session will be more dynamic and less legalistic.
It will explore the effects of globalization on media and how states have reacted upon these. We will look in particular at the tension between trade and culture, and at the concept and regulatory objective of cultural diversity. We will also contemplate whether digital media are differently created, distributed and accessed and if so, what the implications of this may be - in particular for promoting creativity and fostering cultural identities.

Reading materials
Burri, Reconciling Trade and Culture: A Global Law Perspective, JAMLS 41:2 (2011)
Anderson, The Long Tail
UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions

All readings will be of immediate help for those who will present during the interactive session on cultural diversity. They also give a good intro to the session on the challenges and opportunities for global media law.

Here are the slides for session 10.