Browsing by Author "Ferguson, Steve"

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    Open Access
    Analysis of legal and regulatory framework for electronic commerce in Rwanda
    (2011) Nyiringabo, Joseph; Ferguson, Steve; Ncube, Caroline
    Information communication technology (JCT) is a significant tool and support for socio economic development. Developing countries are following the lead of developed countries in integrating the use of technology in different sectors in order to increase their performance. Rwanda is in a process of creating an enabling environment for the population to use the information technology in their daily activities to enhance their socio-economic development. For a country to attain sustainable development, it needs to remove the national and international barriers of doing business by establishing electronic commerce (E commerce). The Government of Rwanda has adopted some laws that govern E-commerce in the country. Due to the complexity of the E-commerce system, the legislature must ensure that the relevant laws are harmonised and consistent. The E-commerce regime includes the domestic legislation as well as international treaties, Model laws and guidelines. This study intends to analyse in detail the way of harmonising the existing the legal and regulatory framework on E-commerce in Rwanda.
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    Peer to peer file sharing in music works; is it an intrusion to copyright? case study of Tanzania
    (2010) Mrutu, Mercy Ezekiel; Ferguson, Steve; Rens, Andrew
    The dissertation critically analyses the effect of peer to peer file sharing in music copyright. Traditionally Copyright law was meant for material or physical works, however, with the development in Information and Computer technology and later digital technology, copying has been made simple and more efficient. As a result, people can now get copyrighted works through peer to peer file sharing, regardless of whether such practice infringe or does not infringe owners exclusive rights. Various countries have taken various steps including amendment of relevant copyright laws and through case decisions in order to balance between users' interests and interests of copyright holders for purposes of making such laws up to date. This study analyses various approaches undertaken by the United States of America and European Union in order to find out how their copyright law developed and addresses issues of digital copyright infringements of music through peer-to-peer file sharing and draw lessons for Tanzania. The interest to carry out this study was intensified by the extent of the problem after discovered that currently music is easily and freely transferred through peer to peer file sharing and at times owners of copyright are not considered through such music transfer. This study assed the current legal position of Tanzania in respect of peer to peer file sharing and assessed whether it provides for music copyright infringement through peer to peer file sharing. The study further reviewed the position of United States of America and European Union in order to make out how their legal framework addressed the problem of peer to peer file sharing in music copyright. The finding of this research was obtained through library research. Findings of this research revealed that the Copyright and Neighboring Rights Act, No 7 of 1999 of Tanzania does not specifically provide for electronic copyright infringement and consequently for music copyright infringement through peer to peer file sharing.
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    Open Access
    The effect of technology on copyright
    (2011) Gachago, Mwangi; Ferguson, Steve; Ncube, Caroline
    Copyright and technology have a long and intertwined history during which both have felt their influence on each other. The exclusive rights of reproduction and distribution given to the creators of artistic and literary works today to are very different from what they were 500 years ago when this relationship began. Copyright developed as a direct consequence of the invention of the printing press. Before its invention, the principle protecting author's rights did not exist because the mass reproduction of literary works was not possible. Gutenberg's invention of movable type, however, revolutionised the industry and the stationers in England moved from reproducing single volumes by hand to producing many more copies to match the growing demand resulting in books gaining significant financial value. Value that was difficult to access by the authors of the books until 200 years later when the Statute of Anne, in an effort to encourage the sustained production or original works, granted the authors exclusive rights to their works and started the whole copyright story. Modern national copyright legislation has evolved with different influences throughout history. However, as the world continued to develop and cross border activity flourished national copyright legislation was not sufficient to govern what had become a global concern. International agreements were developed over time that reacted to technologies influence on copyright while at the same time setting the baseline for national copyright legislation to grow around. The Berne Convention remains the most important international agreement on copyright and most national laws and international instruments have developed with reference to it. Following the age of the printing press, the next major technologies to influence copyright were the new recording and broadcast technologies bringing with them, revolutions that forced major shifts in copyright legislation in its efforts to curb infringement. The current digital era poses the biggest challenge copyright legislation has had to face in its history with technology enabling copyright infringements of a scale by far exceeding all other periods combined. A lot of laws and litigation have marked the path leading up to the situation today with many remedies proving ineffective in reversing the scale of copyright infringement. It is time that the copyright industry stopped fighting new technology and realise that their survival might depend on finding new business models that incorporate technologies like P2P networks into their strategies.