Is More Government Regulation Needed to Promote E-commerce?

E-commerce has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years. Nonetheless, senators, privacy watchdog groups, and the Federal Trade Commission have argued that e-commerce is being held back by consumer worries about online privacy and security. Some privacy advocates are calling for additional regulations, specifically new online privacy rules aimed at providing consumers with more information and customer choice. And Congress has tried to answer that call, most recently with a bill introduced by Senator Ernest Hollings. This essay examines the case for more government regulation and argues that the advocates have overstated their case. While some consumers, particularly older Americans and those new to the Internet, are clearly concerned about online privacy and security, these issues do not appear any more urgent for online shopping than offline shopping. Nor do these issues emerge as significant deterrents to e-commerce. Indeed, it is not even clear that any e-commerce has been deterred. Absent evidence of a significant market failure, the case for further government intervention is weak at best.Technology and Industry

The Benefits and Costs of Online Privacy Legislation

Many people are concerned that information about their private life is more readily available and more easily captured on the Internet as compared to offline technologies. Specific concerns include unwanted email, credit card fraud, identity theft, and harassment. This paper analyzes key issues surrounding the protection of online privacy. It makes three important contributions: First, it provides the most comprehensive assessment to date of the estimated benefits and costs of regulating online privacy. Second, it provides the most comprehensive evaluation of legislation and legislative proposals in the U.S. aimed at protecting online privacy. Finally, it offers some policy prescriptions for the regulation of online privacy and suggests areas for future research. After analyzing the current debate on online privacy and assessing the potential costs and benefits of proposed regulations, our specific recommendations concerning the government's involvement in protecting online privacy include the following: The government should fund research that evaluates the effectiveness of existing privacy legislation before considering new regulations. The government should not generally regulate matters of privacy differently based on whether an issue arises online or offline. The government should not require a Web site to provide notification of its privacy policy because the vast majority of commercial U.S.-based Web sites already do so. The government should distinguish between how it regulates the use and dissemination of highly sensitive information, such as certain health records or Social Security numbers, versus more general information, such as consumer name and purchasing habits. The government should not require companies to provide consumers broad access to the personal information that is collected online for marketing purposes because the benefits do not appear to be significant and the costs could be quite high. The government should make it easier for the public to obtain information on online privacy and the tools available for consumers to protect their own privacy. The message of this paper is not that online privacy should be unregulated, but rather that policy makers should think through their options carefully, weighing the likely costs and benefits of each proposal.

Federalism in Antitrust

Several scholars have suggested that states should play a much more limited role in antitrust enforcement, especially in matters that are national or global in scope. In this paper, we analyze the states' part in the Microsoft case. A case that illustrates the costs of state intervention in antitrust matters that extend beyond state borders. Here, the states' involvement lengthened the lawsuit, complicated the settlement process, and increased both legal uncertainty and litigation costs. These results followed from the states' focus on parochial interests rather than broader concerns for efficiency and equity. We conclude that a state's antitrust enforcement authority should be restricted in matters that extend beyond its borders. After analyzing the motivations for state behavior in federal antitrust, we consider whether restrictions should apply to federal antitrust authorities in cases with international implications. Though a global competition authority could, in principle, be designed to maximize economic well-being, practical and political obstacles appear to rule this option out, at least in the short term. (Revised for the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy ,Summer 2003)

An Economic Assessment of UCITA

The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) is a model contract law developed by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL). Once adopted by a state, it would provide a distinct uniform contract law for 'computer information' products including computer software, multimedia products, computer databases, and online information. This paper reviews the potential economic benefits and costs of adopting UCITA, and in particular, its implications for consumer transactions. The likely benefits include lower transaction costs and improved contract interpretation. We consider several sources of benefits linked to the coordination of state laws: reduced costs due to reduced inconsistency in statutes, reduced costs of information collection and analysis, reduced costs associated with contract negotiation under uniform law, and reduced costs associated with litigation. By contrast, the potential burdens associated with adopting UCITA appear to be minimal. While some critics argue that state-level statutes allow for more innovation in lawmaking, on close examination, independent action apparently holds little promise. States have had two decades to develop specialized law for software licensed at retail, but have not done so. And in any event, individual states adopting UCITA do retain some flexibility to modify the statute's provisions. Thus, while there is no practical way to quantify the potential benefits and costs of UCITA, we conclude that economic well-being would almost surely be enhanced by its adoption since the costs are likely to be small. The argument for adoption is also buttressed by the lack of compelling alternatives. If states do nothing, both producers and consumers will be forced to cope with the uncertainties associated with ongoing inconsistencies in state-level commercial contract law. If the states develop their own regulations for computer information contracts, the lack of uniformity will create burdens. Moreover, there is no good reason to expect their design to be superior to UCITA.Health and Safety, Technology and Industry, Regulatory Reform

Through a glass darkly : an investigation of religious and moral values expressed in children's literature

Bibliography: pages 248-262.The study investigates children's religious and moral reasoning in relation to situations in literature. Theoretical examination includes evaluation of both psychological and literary perspectives on morality and religion. Chapter 1 outlines and evaluates the cognitive-developmental approach to moral development as developed by Jean Piaget and Lawrence Kohlberg. The validity of stage categorization is questioned and it is suggested that consideration of types of moral reasoning contributes more than the idea of fixed moral stages to the understanding of moral thought processes. Chapter 2 outlines a literary perspective on religion and examines the emphasis in orientation towards religion as expressed by fantasy and moralistic literature. Although literature has not been categorically designated moralistic literature, passages which contain moralistic emphasis are isolated for discussion. Evaluation of the discipline of reader response theory integrates the theoretical and practical aspects of the study

Risk factors for spontaneous abortion among danish pregnancy planners

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Boston UniversitySpontaneous abortion (SAB) is the unexpected loss of a conceptus early in pregnancy. Methodologic limitations such as left truncation bias, recall bias, and misclassification have prevented investigators from identifying risk factors related to this adverse pregnancy outcome. The objective of this dissertation was to examine the associations of body size, caffeine consumption, and history of oral contraceptive (OC) use with SAB risk among a prospective cohort of pregnancy planners in Denmark. In study 1, we examined SAB risk in relation to body size as measured by body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), height, and location of typical weight gain. We found that overall obesity (defined as BMI230) was associated with an increased risk of SAB, especially for pregnancy losses before 8 gestational weeks. Increasing WHR and increasing height were associated with a decreased risk ofSAB. Underweight, WC, and location of weight gain were not materially associated with SAB risk. The second study evaluated risk of SAB in relation to consumption of caffeine and caffeinated beverages before conception and during early pregnancy. We found that women who consumed higher amounts of coffee per day before pregnancy had a slightly higher risk of SAB. Overall, increased caffeine consumption during early pregnancy was also associated with higher risk of SAB. Study 3 assessed the risk of SAB in relation to self-reported history of OC use, evaluated in terms of recency, duration, and formulation of the most recent pill. Recent and longer durations of OC use were independently associated with a decreased risk of SAB. When stratified by maternal age, younger women ( < 30 years) had an increased risk of SAB with longer duration but older women (~30 years) had a decreased risk of SAB

An analysis of factors related to areawide highway traffic congestion

Roadway expansion is a traditional strategy used to accommodate travel demand and reduce traffic congestion in urban areas. The potential negative effects of roadway expansion and mounting concerns over urban area congestion, however, have spurred research into the factors that control congestion. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between traffic congestion, travel demand, and supply of roadways. To accomplish this goal, data for the top 138 urbanized areas (by population) were assembled for developing a least squares regression model. Travel Rate Index,a congestion measure developed by researchers at the Texas Transportation Institute, was selected as the response (dependent) vanable. A variety of explanatory variables were used to address highway and transit supply and travel demand related factors. The partial regression coefficients measured the effect of each explanatory (independent) variable on congestion (as measured by Travel Rate Index), holding all other independent variables constant. The results of the multiple regression analysis indicated a negative correlation between freeway lane miles and Combined Travel Rate Index. Additionally, a strong positive correlation was observed between Combined Travel Rate Index and population density and net land area, respectively. A positive correlation was observed between Combined Travel Rate Index and bus transit service revenue miles Principal arterial lane miles and rail transit revenue miles variables were not observed to be significant for explaining traffic congestion and were removed entirely during the stepwise regression The results indicated that the best predictors among the tested variables were freeway lane miles, population density, net land area, and bus revenue miles. When used together, these predictors accounted for approximately 61% of the total variation in the dependent variable, Combined Travel Rate Index. Overall, population and net land area accounted for the bulk of the variation in congestion level (Travel Rate Index)

The Matas barn , Robin Plantation (16SL66), St. Landry Parish, Louisiana-history and archaeology of a nineteenth century milk house

The Robin Plantation Site (16SL66) is located on the left descending bank of Bayou Teche, near the town of Arnaudville, Louisiana. The site—owned by the Michael and Myra Matas—consists of 14.14 acres of land, a main house, the “barn,” a circa 1945 barn, an overseer’s house and two above-ground cistern bases. The primary goal of this thesis was to determine the age and function of Room 1 of the “barn.” The “barn” in its present form consists of two rooms separated by a breezeway: Room 1 of pièce-sur-pièce construction and Room 2 of post-on-sill construction. As noted, the focus of this thesis is on Room 1. Room 1 was originally constructed as a separate building and later incorporated into the “barn.” It is a finely constructed, securely built, pièce-sur-pièce structure with beaded molding and wooden floor. These architectural details suggest that Room 1 did not originally function as an animal shelter. A series of research questions were posed to determine the age and function of Room 1. Archival, archaeological and architectural investigations were conducted to answer these questions. Archival research did not reveal the function of Room 1. However, archival evidence and the architectural details of Room 1 suggest that it was constructed concomitantly with the Matas Main House between 1812 and 1815. Room 1 could have served any of several functions including: a residence, office, storehouse or milk house. Archaeological investigations were inconclusive as to the function of Room 1. However, the author concluded from these investigations that Room 1 most likely did not function as a residence, office or storehouse. Architectural comparisons were made between Room 1 and other pièce-sur-pièce buildings with known functions located in Louisiana to further support the archaeological evidence that it did not function as a residence, office or kitchen. Room 1 shared many similarities with one of these buildings, the Rosedown Milk House. The building was then compared both archaeologically and architecturally to other milk house sites and structures, respectively. The author concluded that Room 1 was a milk house constructed between 1812 and 1815 through those investigations

Regulating the Raters: The Law and Economics of Ratings Firms

Consumers and producers frequently rely on product ratings, such as college rankings, restaurant reviews and bond ratings. While much has been written about the structure of ratings in particular industries, little has been written on the general structure of different ratings industries and whether government intervention is typically needed. This paper begins that inquiry by examining the market structure of different ratings industries, and considering the circumstances under which firms that provide ratings should be regulated. The issue is particularly timely in light of recent calls to rethink the regulation of media ratings and credit ratings. We find that ratings firms in different industries share several common features. For example, most ratings firms operate in highly concentrated markets. Some factors that could make ratings markets more concentrated include economies of scale, benefits from having a single standard, and general agreement on what should be measured. We also find that most ratings firms determine their own testing standards and methods, although some industries have self-governing oversight bodies that offer their own accreditation standards. While the government regulates firm entry for a few ratings industries, this is relatively rare. The vast majority of ratings firms are unregulated. We analyze the question of regulation using an economic framework that focuses on the viability and effectiveness of a proposed policy. Despite the finding that many ratings industries are concentrated, our analysis suggests that market forces generally appear to be an effective mechanism for providing consumers and producers with useful ratings. In most cases, such markets do not require government intervention. Moreover, in industries characterized by rapid technological change the government is likely to do more harm than good by intervening. As an alternative to government regulation, voluntary industry oversight bodies may be effective in improving communication between the parties and in improving transparency in rating procedures.