Technology, Media and Telecommunications Law LLM

This module brings together an interdisciplinary perspective on behaviour science, welfare, economics, and law in order to introduce students to a range of legal and welfare issues arising through the use of animals in media, culture and entertainment. The module will deal with both domesticated and wild animals, considering animals in film and television, advertising, fashion, zoos and conservation, circuses, and sport. Students will also explore a range of critical questions and specific episodes on animals and creativity, including the animal as performer and the animal as author, analysing the significance for sentience and welfare, and gaining important insight into creativity and intentionality in other areas of the law (including intellectual property).

The central question which this module will address is how Transnational law impacts on the future of law-making, supervision and enforcement of rules in a globalised world of transnational business and markets. Globalisation and polycentrality are phenomena that influence every aspect of the world society and challenge the efficiency and validity centralized law-making by the states. In a globalised world where business is mostly done at transnational level coupled with the pace that both economic and technology change, traditional national law-making is proving ineffective and as a result we have witnessed alternatives appearing, including from regional and international organisations but also from private transnational market actors too. The law has emerged from its national setting and presents itself as transnational which has important ramifications for policy making. A weekly topical issue related to Transnational Law will be discussed in depth. The discussions are based on readings and will follow a presentation of the readings. Potential issues which could be covered include: Is Transnational Law, Law?; The World Justice Forum Index; the Cape Town Convention; Climate Change as a Transnational Legal Order; private law-making in the diamond trade and financial markets; and Transnational lawyering.

Copyright, the legal foundation of the creative industries, is by its modern nature international and comparative This module will offer students a solid basis for understanding the essential elements of copyright law ,its philosophical and legal basis, the international Copyright Treaties, and the different approaches adopted in major civil and common law countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the United States. We further focus on the growth of EU copyright law with its distinctive flavour, which incorporates civil law doctrines in a pragmatically common law precedent-based approach. Where relevant, reference is also made to well-known decisions on certain topics in Australia, Canada and India. This interactive course will explore copyright principles by considering and discussing crucial topics, namely, the types of protected works, copyright ownership, beneficiaries, term, nature of rights, exceptions and limitations, collective management, enforcement and user rights - from national and international perspectives. The course also looks at current international copyright policy discussions such as new Treaties and Trade Agreements. The module will enable students to embark on more specialised and in-depth courses.

This interdisciplinary module brings a range of perspectives to the analysis of intellectual property law in the fashion and design industries, including business sociology and knowledge management, art history and fashion theory, fan theory and fashion tribes, and economic and cultural aspects. Students will understand and analyse fundamental interactions between protection frameworks, the creative process, and the fashion customer, analysing critically the social, political and legal aspects of the industry and its interaction with other cultural forms. The course equips students with the skills to identify and manage intellectual property in fashion practice and to analyse critically policy aspects of the fashion industries and the interaction with the law.

In this module, students will engage directly with industry and commercial fashion practice through workshops and enterprise development, gaining specific insight into design practice, fashion media, merchandising, branding, and retail curation. Seminars will cover a range of topics in commercial fashion enterprise and will consider in detail practical examples in management and innovation, allowing students to gain a comprehensive insight into building a fashion brand identity and an understanding of commercial and artistic practice in fashion and design.

Interactive Entertainment Law analyses some of the legal, commercial, contractual and regulatory issues that the Games and Interactive Entertainment industry faces in. It delineates and analyses the legal parameters within which developers and publishers operate and in which players create and consume content, providing students with an in-depth analysis of the industry from the development to the commercialisation of interactive entertainment products.

This module introduces students to skills in reading film and intellectual property critically and analytically. Students will undertake interdisciplinary evaluation of film protection and commercialisation using film theory, fan and cultural studies, and intellectual property. Studying key jurisdictions and markets, topics include history of film and its protection, film theory and intellectual property, film theory and creative practice, authorship and film practice, audience and reception, sound and intellectual property, adaptation and genre.

This module deals with intellectual property and the international film industries, including the transformative environment of digital technology and user-generated content, through a consideration of protection and commercialisation in key jurisdictions and markets. Topics include the development of a film prospectus, ancillary rights, financing and alternative funding (including crowdfunding models and fan-based theories), development and production, distribution, merchandising and co-branding, film franchises and adaptations, censorship, titles and credits, cast and performers.

The Music industry contracts module analyses the contracts between the various parts of the music industry. On the creative side it looks at the contracts between composers and music publishers; performers/ producers and record companies as well as other players such as music managers. A key aspect of the creative side of the music value chain concerns the activities of Collective Management Organisations and the module analyses the membership agreements of PRS for Music, MCPS and PPL respectively. The module we also look at the relation of music industry players with users such as broadcasting organisations and online platforms. The course will show how copyright is applied in practice on the example of the music industry. The music industry has been at the cutting edge of legal and commercial developments dealing with new business models throughout the years. The course will look at the main markets for music such as US and UK. Experiences in the field of music are transferable to all creative sectors such as audio visual and book publishing.

The module introduces students to fundamental problems and concepts pertaining to intellectual property rights, with an emphasis on copyright law, in digital environments. The module focuses on the divergent interests of various stakeholders, such as authors, exploiters, consumers and creators that challenge law making today, and addresses topics ranging from the protection of software and databases, exclsuive rights and limitations, technological protection measures, the relationship between IP and fundamental rights, and online enforcement amongst others. A further emphasis will be placed on the role of the European Court of Justice and the interface between international norms and market integration.

The module covers information technology transactions, contracts and licences in a variety of areas, such as: system procurement contracts, commercial software licensing, outsourcing, cloud computing and free and open source software.

Internet technologies have enabled new ways of committing crimes and have moved "old" crimes such as fraud online- this has created interesting challenges to substantive criminal law. These challenges concern both the interpretation of traditional criminal law (common law and statute based) and potential new crimes where there is a need to develop the law to close legal gaps. This Module examines substantive criminal law(s) of different jurisdictions (using the UK and the US as the main comparators) from a comparative and international perspective. It also looks at international harmonization efforts such as the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime and the EU framework for the harmonization of the law in the fields of cybercrime. The Module looks at definitions and categorisation of cybercrime; the relationships between cyberterrorims, cyberwarfare and cybercrime; content related cybercrime (such as child sex abuse images; pornography; IP infringement; terrorism propaganda (glorification and encouragement); hate speech); communication offences and harassment; online fraud and forgery; computer misuse (hacking; malicious code; interception) and illegal devices and malicious marketplaces. It will also examine the jurisdictional aspects of such criminality.

The security of important data, including personal, is of considerable concern to governments around the world as is the safety of critical infrastructure assets, systems, and networks (both public and private) that are considered so vital that their incapacitation or destruction would have a debilitating effect on security, national economic security, national public health or safety. Concerns about former have led to growing legal obligations to ensure the security of information and the systems that transmit and store it. Whether as part of personal data protection regimes, sector-specific regulations (e.g., healthcare, banking and finance) private law or company law obligations, these present a growing source of potential corporate liability. Concerns about the latter have produced frameworks to enable oversight and cooperation needed to manage and mitigate risks to critical infrastructure. This course examines various EU and US legal frameworks .

The Module analyses the concept and theories of jurisdiction under International Law (Public International Law), from the perspective of international criminal law, especially in the context of transnational crimes such as cybercrime, from the perspective of regulation (eg data protection and transborder data flows; online gambling; online content regulation) and from the perspective of private international law/conflicts of law (jurisdiction and applicable law in civil and commercial disputes such as contract, torts generally, defamation & privacy infringements, IP infringements). It therefore takes a novel approach by looking both at private law and public law- but this approach is necessary as internet communications are not restricted to private law and private international law.

This digital revolution has had an enormous impact on fundamental rights such as freedom of expression and privacy (and personality rights more widely), and on concepts such as identity, autonomy and agency online. The Module will analyse (1) how the law protects these rights and balances them with the rights of others; (2) whether new fundamental rights should be recognized online and (3) how the law balances potential harms online with these rights. The Module will examine the relationship between law, technology and behaviour. It has a practical dimension by looking at liability relating to online communication and the management of that risk and by examining how these existing and emerging rights can be enforced (including for example the disclosure of a pseudonymous identity). It has a theoretical, law & policy dimension by examining concepts such as identity, privacy and autonomy and how these concepts relate to the law. It will compare traditional approaches to (offline) media regulation and how they relate to new phenomena on social media. The Module therefore examines traditional approaches to content regulation on "old" media and how these censorship regime(s) is challenged by new media, reflecting on how the law needs to adapt to "cope" with new (and ever evolving) technologies and business practices. As in traditional media regulation, this encapsulates administrative, civil and criminal law approaches to content regulation and censorship.

Entrepreneurship Law Clinic is a unique opportunity to learn and reflect on the legal issues that face entrepreneurs. In this module you will have the opportunity to (i) develop a number of professional skills and your professional identity; (ii) understand the practical legal issues that are faced by entrepreneurs and how to respond to those issues; (iii) interview and draft advice for a client; (iv) develop and practice public speaking and presentation skills; (v) work within a team and network closely with legal experts and entrepreneurship specialists in London's Tech City. Students must adhere to the Legal Advice Centre's practices and procedures including the signing of a confidentiality agreement and student contract.

Media Law: Reputation Management covers the key areas of law used by those who seek to build and protect a media 'brand' for commercial gain. The module will open with a detailed consideration of libel law and how that protects the public image of an individual (or, indeed, an entity with legal personhood). Whereas perhaps three decades ago the law in this area seemed well settled, the challenges of the internet combined with much of the Defamation Act 2013 remaining to be refined through interpretation by the courts makes this an important and ongoing focus for study by the commercial media lawyer. The second aspect of law which the module will look at is the developing area of privacy. While traditionally English law has not offered direct protection for privacy, a wide range of las have been used in effect to prevent or at least compensate individuals aggrieved by private elements of their lives being published to the masses. Sometimes this has simply been about the privacy of an individual, while in other circumstances it has been about the protection of a direct commercial relationship (such as that between the Douglases and OK Magazine in Douglas v Hello). The development of the tort of Misuse of Private Information, a result of the application of the Human Rights Act 1998, has arguably created a de facto common law privacy protection which continues to explore new nuances at the discretion of the courts.

The course will consider the following key topics: Media ownership and legal control thereof; The importance of content (internal) plurality for freedom of expression; Broadcasting regulation - who has the right to broadcast? Licensing systems; Regulation of broadcast content - how is this done (and why? Reactive, not pro-active) ; OTT content providers and the shift to online delivery replacing television - technological challenges to traditional means of regulation of television-type content, and how these are being met; Regulation of the press - extra-legal regulation, with enhanced freedom to editorialise. Why? What problems has this raised? How have things changed (if at all) as a result of the fallout from Leveson and the phone hacking scandal?; Advertising has only increased in importance in terms of media funding in recent decades, with much media, both traditional (Channel 4 television, Evening Standard and Metro newspapers) and online (Guardian newspapers online versions, among others), being wholly dependent on advertising revenue to fund itself. Important as this revenue stream then is to preserving a vibrant media sector, it also requires significant regulation in order to ensure that it does not damage the consumer (misleading advertising, consumer protection issues), or compromise the quality or reliability of entertainment content (e.g. rules on product placement introduced in 2011). Challenges presented by new media developments, such as 'sponsored posts' by celebrities on Twitter and other social media platforms ill also be considered. While English law will be used as the primary reference point for teaching in this module, it will be presented not as a course in English law but rather using English law as a case-study example of how some of the big questions for regulation of the media may be answered. Student discussion will be encouraged to raise examples and alternative ideas from other jurisdictions.

This module examines the law relating to online commercial transactions (bearing in mind that there is much commercial activity which is, ostensibly, ?free? ? Facebook and Google are prime examples). It focuses on the law which governs a range of online transactions, including contracting, signatures and online marketplaces. Because e-commerce is a global activity we don?t examine the law of one country alone (though we will inevitably look at more UK and EU law than that of anywhere else). Our focus is on the underlying principles which are common to all jurisdictions, and the differences in some areas ? the theory is that if you understand these, you will be able to analyse any particular national law and apply it to the particular e-commerce activity in question.

The evolving area of AI and Robotics gives rise to many ethical and legal questions over the status of robots, the rights and responsibilities arising from their use and liability for any harm caused. The module will explore the issues of legal personhood, the protection of robots through IP, the responsibilities arising from data use and the various approaches to allocating responsibility and liability. The module covers both embodied artificial intelligent systems (robots) and non-embodied ones (intelligent agents). Distinction is also made between the behaviour of robots as tools of human interaction, and robots as independent agents in the legal arena and its legal ramifications.

Over 100 jurisdictions have adopted frameworks protecting personal data, many in response to the EU data protection framework that precludes international transfers unless equivalent protection applies. This module examines a number of these data protection legal frameworks, particularly in key jurisdictions such as Russia, China, APEC, Canada, Australia and the US. In addition to examining their particular implementation of the fair information processing principles that have emerged as best practice, the module will explore the key policy implications and debates around trade, commercial and human rights implications and, enforcement, including the challenges of particular technological developments, such as telecommunications, cloud computing and the Internet of Things.

Esports law focuses on the legal, contractual, commercial and regulatory issues that affect competitive video gaming. The module recognises the magnitude of the phenomenon and delineates the legal and commercial parameters under which esports industries operates.

Interactive Entertainment Transactions focuses on legal and business issues contained in the complex matrix of agreements used to structure deals in the games and interactive entertainment industry and provide the legal skills needed to analyse, negotiate, and draft agreements representing various parties in the video game industry.

This module offers the unique opportunity to work on a real legal project on international economic law of practical importance to a beneficiary. The module is conducted as a legal clinic running over semesters 2 and 3. Students will be grouped in project teams each consisting of a maximum of four students and assigned a project to work on specific questions posed by real beneficiaries who are seeking legal advice on specific problems in international economic law. Under the supervision of an academic supervisor and with the support of professional mentors, each team will prepare written legal memoranda on the assigned problem and present it to the beneficiaries at the end of semester 3. The bulk of the module consists on students' independent work on the project along with meetings with academic supervisors, mentors and beneficiaries as well as workshops on professional skills. By taking this module you will be part of the tradelab community. Tradelab is a selective network of universities that run clinics to make global economic regulation work for everyone, connecting students and experts to developing countries, SMEs and NGOs to build lasting legal capacity. Queen Mary has been selected as the only UK university to run a tradelab pilot clinic in the academic year 2021-2022.

This module will cover topics including: Ownership and control of the media; Press regulation; EU Broadcasting Law and the shift to regulation of online, streaming content; UK Broadcasting Law and the shift to regulation of online, streaming content; Advertising Regulation; Article 10, Freedom of Speech and the reasonable limits thereon with a view to protecting the Article 6 right to a fair trial, in the context of media reporting the courts; Contempt of Court and the media - filming and livestreaming the courts, contempt by publication; Reporting restrictions and the media - including identification of victims of serious crimes, statutory restrictions on reporting proceedings involving children and vulnerable adults, discretionary judicial orders, the media's right to representation and to appeal orders ; and Protection of journalists sources and materials, including digital resources and communications, from undue state / police interference.

The advanced research seminar will focus on current problems of platform liability for copyright infringement in the European Union and (partially beyond). The seminar will take place in Term 3 (June 2022).

The course will be taught by leading practitioners in legal engineering and design, combining both academic and hands-on practical experience using some of the latest legal tech. This module will examine the theory and application of technology to legal practice and procedures. It will consider how machine learning and AI has been, and could be, deployed within the legal sector to provide substantive legal advice, procedural risk analysis, the provision of legal services and contract and practice management. The interaction of technology and legal design will be examined, as well as the practical, legal and ethical issues that legal tech raise.

This module offers the opportunity to learn about advocacy from an experienced English commercial barrister. The module begins by examining the role and nature of advocacy in commercial disputes. It then considers the theory of persuasion, a subject that is ? surprisingly ? rarely taught to law students. The rest of the module investigates the key skills of professional advocates, including oral and written submissions, and cross-examination. The module draws on a range of materials, from the rhetoric handbooks of classical antiquity to videos of recent hearings in the UK Supreme Court.