Chevron Left
Back to Internet Giants: The Law and Economics of Media Platforms

Learner Reviews & Feedback for Internet Giants: The Law and Economics of Media Platforms by The University of Chicago

4.8
stars
1,092 ratings

About the Course

This seven-week course will explore the relationship between law and technology with a strong focus on the law of the United States with some comparisons to laws around the world, especially in Europe. Tech progress is an important source of economic growth and raises broader questions about the human condition, including how culture evolves and who controls that evolution. Technology also matters in countless other ways as it often establishes the framework in which governments interact with their citizens, both in allowing speech and blocking it and in establishing exactly what the boundaries are between private life and the government. And technology itself is powerfully shaped by the laws that apply in areas as diverse as copyright, antitrust, patents, privacy, speech law and the regulation of networks. The course will explore seven topics: 1. Microsoft: The Desktop vs. The Internet. We will start with a look at the technology path that led to the first personal computer in early 1975, the Altair 8800. That path starts with the vacuum tube, moves to transistors, then to integrated circuits and finally to the microprocessor. We will look at the early days of software on the personal computer and the competition between selling software and open-source approaches as well as the problem of software piracy. We will discus the public good nature of software. The 1981 launch of the IBM PC revolutionized the personal computer market and started the path to Microsoft's powerful position and eventual monopoly in that market with the selection of MS-DOS. We then turn to four antitrust cases against Microsoft: (1) the 1994 U.S. case relating to MS-DOS licensing practices; (2) the U.S. antitrust middleware case over Microsoft’s response to Netscape Navigator; (3) the European Union case regarding Windows Media Player; and (4) the EU browser case over Internet Explorer. These disputes arose at the point of maximal competition between the free-standing personal computer and the Internet world that would come after it and we may know enough now to assess how these cases influenced that competition. 2. Google Emerges (and the World Responds). Google has emerged as one of the dominant platforms of the Internet era and that has led to corresponding scrutiny by regulators throughout the world. Decisions that Google makes about its algorithm can be life altering. Individuals are finding it more difficult to put away past mistakes, as Google never forgets, and businesses can find that their sales plummet if Google moves them from the first page of search results to a later page. With great power comes scrutiny and we will look at how government regulators have evaluated how Google has exercised its power. Both the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the European Union have undertaken substantial investigations of Google’s practices and we will look at both of those. 3. Smartphones. The Internet started on the desktop but the Internet is increasingly mobile and people are seemingly tethered to their smartphones and tablets. And we have seen an interesting shift in that market away from Nokia handsets and the Blackberry to Apple's iPhone and its iOS platform and to the Android platform. The legal infrastructure of smartphones and tablets is extraordinarily complex. We will start by looking at U.S. spectrum policy and the effort to free up 500 megahertz of spectrum. We will look at the activities of standard setting organizations, including the IEEE and the creation of the 802.11 standard and Wi-Fi (or, if you prefer, wifi), the creation of patent pools and the regulation of standard essential patents. We will look at the FTC action against Google/Motorola Mobility and Apple's lawsuit against Samsung over utility and design patents relating to the iPhone. Finally, we will take a brief look at the European Commission's investigation into the Android platform. 4. Nondiscrimination and Network Neutrality. Facebook has more than 1 billion users and measure that against a world population of roughly 7 billion and a total number of Internet users of roughly 2.5 billion. A course on law and technology simply has to grapple with the basic framework for regulating the Internet and a key idea there is the notion of network neutrality. Nondiscrimination obligations are frequent in regulated network industries, but at the same, discrimination can be an important tool of design for communication networks. We will start our look at the Internet by looking at the great first communications network of the United States, the post office and will look in particular at the Post Office Act of 1845. We will then move to modern times and will consider efforts by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to produce sensible and sustainable nondiscrimination conditions for the Internet and will touch briefly on comparisons from around the world. 5. The Day the Music Died? In many ways, the Internet came first to music with the rise of peer-to-peer (p2p) music sharing through Napster and its successors. We start with a look into music platform history and the devices that brought recorded music into the home: the phonograph and the player piano. We turn to radio and the legal regime that puts music on the airwaves, the performing rights organizations like ASCAP and BMI. We look at the antitrust issues associated with the blanket license. We consider a failed music platform, digital audio tape, and the complicated legal regime associated with it, the Audio Home Recording Act of 1992. We will consider the copyright issues raised by the creation and distribution of music and the litigation over the p2p technologies such as Napster and Grokster. The music industry responded to p2p technology by adding digital rights management tools to CDs. As music distribution switched from physical media to digital distribution, we entered the world of Apple and the iPod and iTunes. We consider the DRM issues associated with Apple's music platform as seen by Steve Jobs. We conclude by looking at emerging subscription services like Spotify and the service that Apple is building based on its purchase of Beats. 6. Video: Listening and Watching. Images are some of the most powerful ways in which ideas and speech are communicated and video has long been regulated by the state. That starts as a communications law issue with government regulation of the radio spectrum, but also leads to the design of the television system with the assignment of channels and eventually the definition of digital television. And with the emergence first of cable TV and subsequently the VCR critical copyright roadblocks had to be overcome for new distribution technologies to emerge. We will consider the legal engineering that led to the DVD platform, which was an exercise in patent pools and trademark creation. We will sort through the creation of the digital TV platform and will also look at the copyright underpinnings for Netflix. And we will consider the question of technology neutrality in the content of the copyright fight over a new video distribution entrant, Aereo. Finally, we close the week with a brief look at the incentive spectrum auctions and the possible end of broadcast television. 7. The Mediated Book. Gutenberg revolutionized books with his printing press and for academics, books are sacred objects. But the printed book is on the run and with the rise of the ebook, we are entering a new era, the era of the mediated book. This is more than just a change in technology. We will look at the issues created by the rise of the ebook, issues about control over content and licensing and of the privacy of thought itself. We will also look at the legal skirmishes over this space, including the copyright fair use litigation over Google Books, the Apple e-book antitrust case. And we will look at the Amazon Kindle platform....

Top reviews

NA

Apr 17, 2022

This course provided the background knowledge I needed on the Internet Giants and how they came to be so. Thank you Randy and all the people who worked behind the scenes to deliver this to us.

DC

Feb 4, 2017

It was really really cool, I learnt a lot, the readings were always interesting, the course was well-structured, super understandable and easy to follow. I would recommend it wholeheartedly!

Filter by:

51 - 75 of 233 Reviews for Internet Giants: The Law and Economics of Media Platforms

By Kriti T

•

Oct 24, 2017

I enjoyed the course thoroughly. Prof. Picker's lectures were informative, analytical and practical. The additional readings he identified were great for more in-depth learning. Overall, the entire course proved useful for me, and I look forward to more (similar) programmes.

By Mateus M

•

Jul 4, 2017

I enjoyed this course way more than I expected. Randy Picker is an excellent teacher and a perfect guide to the questions that involve Antitrust, IP and Policy Making in Tech. Im leaving this course with the feeling that I actually learned valuable lessons for my practice.

By Visvesh

•

Sep 5, 2016

Great course. Amazing amount of detail with which each topic is dealt. Advanced learners have an option to gain additional knowledge on the topics covered by using the extra-depth readings section. I have taken almost 10 MOOCs till date and none was as engaging as this.

By Renata K

•

Feb 25, 2017

Greatest course I've seen until now. The professor is both engaging and funny, which makes watching the lessons enjoyable and enriching. Loved it so much I would really love if the UNiversity of Chicago would offer a specialization course in the subject via Coursera.

By Sandra M

•

Oct 18, 2015

A very useful overview of the antitrust, copyright and economic issues raised by various internet and media platforms. The course is useful not only for law practitioners but for everyone who would like to have a grasp of the major players on the digital market.

By sahil a

•

Mar 27, 2019

I have done 90% of the course till now and it has been an amazing experience. The quality content and its delivery has been outstanding. Complex issues are made into easily understandable language. It has really nudged me into the challenging world of tech law.

By Кожина К Е

•

Nov 2, 2016

This is the best course I have ever attended! Many-many thanks to mr. Picker for his great antitrust perspective and an ability to easily explain very complicated issues! Looking forward to your new courses involving antitrust and again thanks and best wishes!

By Andreu C

•

Jan 18, 2016

Thourough course, full of interesting material to expand knowledge on the topic. Prof. Picker's videos are extremely well done, with examples, and a good line of explanations that usually start far from the issues to get back to the issue and connect de dots.

By Victor S

•

Oct 25, 2021

Enlightening class, it would be so great to have a new module with updates on the many things that happened over the last five years. Thank you Randy Picker, from the University of Chicago. This was internet giant, the law and economics of media platform.

By Daniel F

•

Apr 1, 2017

Randy Picker is such an animated speaker. The subject matters discussed were very interesting and informative. Randy was able to present complex topics in simple ways such that it can be understood by a person without any background in that topic.

By Avi J

•

Feb 2, 2017

Interesting course. Takes you through the history of the biggest technology firms, pausing at crucial lawsuits as well as business decisions. I particularly liked the way Prof. Picker draws hypothetical parallels to explain certain scenarios.

By Gouri K

•

Sep 29, 2020

Prof Randy has wonderful sense of passion for the topic and piques our curiosity at every turn. One of the courses that I could binge watch all day. Market behaviour and legal strategy are two key concepts that i could take from this course.

By Miguel O

•

Aug 17, 2015

It was a privilege listening to this passionate and clear guide through the history of technology and antitrust with all the relevant docs . Each time I finished a segment I could not help listening to the next one. Like in a good tv series!

By Troy Z C

•

May 10, 2016

This course is great! well organised and clearly argued! I followed each and every section of it and all the readings and recourses are well prepared! Would recommend to anyone who is doing research in law, technology and sociology alike!

By Evgenii P

•

Jan 30, 2017

One of the most enriching and interesting courses for a 21 year-old Russian Law student contemplating a career in IT & IP Law. I'd like to express extreme gratitude to Prof. Picker and his team for making this course a success!

By lisa p

•

Nov 15, 2020

Very detailed and informative.This was very challenging and gruelling and although the course is free,to earn the certificate wasn't a giveaway.You have to work and put in the work but it was definitely worth it!...Enjoyed it!

By Cora Y

•

Sep 27, 2015

This is a great introduction to both the law associated with how a critical part of everyday life became what it is and the building blocks that I never knew were part of it! Thank you Randy for sharing your vast knowledge!

By Ritika N

•

Nov 29, 2020

although I am not a law student but the way Mr. picker taught the subject I got interested in it so much.

the course was thorough and I really enjoyed every bit of it. Thank you to the professor he was reallly amazing.

By Nneoma G A

•

Apr 18, 2022

This course provided the background knowledge I needed on the Internet Giants and how they came to be so. Thank you Randy and all the people who worked behind the scenes to deliver this to us.

By Víctor M V V

•

Dec 2, 2020

Aunque hay temáticas muy específicas que quizá no se entiendan. En un excelente curso para adentrarse en la economía, estructura, propiedad intelectual e historia de las Media Platforms.

By Pablo L

•

Dec 10, 2020

Thank you so mucho Professor for this course. Actually, I perfectly understand the matters of the emergene of the GAFA (european expression i know) and competition law issues.

By Oleksii L

•

Jul 26, 2017

Extremly passioned teacher, very informative course. If the english is not your native language, Randy's voice and language is very kind and understandable. Very nice. 10\10.

By Marcelo S

•

Nov 9, 2015

Excelent course and very up to date material.

Very interesting topics and documents presented along with the material.

Great teacher with outstanding knowledge of the material

By Ligia G

•

Aug 30, 2020

An extremely enriching course. In the digital age it is very important that we seek to learn more about platforms, especially their laws. Glad to have completed it.

By Kainat T

•

Dec 2, 2018

I am so blessed to be part of this amazing course. Prof. Picker is the finest and professional teacher. It was excellent experience of my life. Thank you so much.