E-Commerce

In 2005, it was estimated that the one billionth user went on-line. In 1999, Al Gore famously said, "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet." In 1994, the first version of Netscape was released. In 1991, Tim Berners-Lee announced the world wide web project. In 1983, the Internet was formed when its precursor, Arpanet, was split into military and civilian networks. In 1978, TCP/IP, the protocol that would drive the Internet, was created from an earlier transmission control protocol.

And beginning in 1974, Wayne Bennett worked as a civilian mathematician developing militarized operating systems and inter-computer communication protocols for the system of worldwide command and control computers maintained by the United States Department of Defense. These systems were finally (some would say mercifully) decommissioned in 1996 and probably contributed little to what became the Internet, but Bennett's participation in computer industry, as a technologist, businessperson and attorney in the intervening three decades has given him an appreciation of the nuances of this "new" medium.

The bloom is off the rose in e-commerce. Having an Internet presence has graduated from an interesting new phenomenon to a commercial necessity. Yet the law has been slow to grapple with the many issues arising in connection with maintaining a worldwide commercial storefront. Compounding the continued confusion, too many sites have bulky, over-protective published policies and terms that were cribbed from other sites and accomplish little more than leaving visitors bewildered.

Internet deals have settled down in the sense that they are now tested against customary business objectives like revenue targets and profitability. But on-line arrangements remain among the most fertile areas for innovation. Bennett Law can help guide you through the thicket of evolving business models and patchwork legislation in order to maximize your Internet presence.

Representative transactions:

  • B2B exchanges
  • Co-branding
  • Click-wraps
  • Domain name issues
  • Aggregation & scraping
  • Privacy policies
  • Children's online privacy protection
  • Terms of service
  • On-line sweepstakes
  • Internet advertising & sponsorship
  • ASP
  • Hosting/ISP
  • Web development
  • Web-casting

 

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