Undergraduate Module Descriptor

LAW3188: Internet Law

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Aims

This module aims at providing you with a thorough understanding of select issues arising from the development of the Internet and the increased popularity of online transactions. The focus of the module will be on the societal shift that the development of the Internet brought about and the resulting need for policymakers to accommodate the new market trends in their law-making. Various areas of law struggle to accommodate the rise of the Internet and online transactions, either by attempting to stretch the interpretation of the existing regulatory framework to cover the newly identified in online transactions issues, or by devising new rules applicable specifically to the digital market. The module aims to provide you with the necessary legal, theoretical and contextual background in order to analyse effectively the rationales, application and limits of various rules adopted by legislators while regulating the Internet. Due to the comprehensive framework of discussed issues, touching upon different areas of private law, you will improve your academic analytical skills, but also learn to engage critically with law in context.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge and a thorough understanding of the main areas of Internet law; 2. identify, explain and critically evaluate the main legal instruments regulating Internet law; 3. demonstrate critical awareness of a wide range of social, moral, pragmatic and economic implications of regulating Internet law; 4. compare, analyse and synthesise the principal rules and theories relating to Internet law.
Discipline-Specific Skills	5. demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and understanding of a range of legal concepts, values, principles, institutions and procedures, and explain the relationships among them, as well as their limits; 6. demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of legal concepts and their contextual, social and commercial implications; 7. apply legal knowledge to a problem/case study and suggest a conclusion supported by relevant arguments; 8. integrate and assess information from primary and secondary legal sources using appropriate interpretative techniques.
Personal and Key Skills	9. manage relevant learning resources/information and develop own arguments and opinions with minimum guidance; 10. communicate and engage in debate effectively and accurately, in a manner appropriate to the discipline.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

introduction to the issues and the concept of Internet law;
different issues related to concluding contracts online, specifically online contracts of sale. Among discussed issues: privacy policies; terms of use; digital content; social media; information requirements and provision of information online; non-conformity; right of withdrawal; lack of supply;
the role, rights and obligations of online intermediaries, and whether these should differ based on the type of online intermediary (social media, P2P platforms, online marketplaces, Wikimedia, others);
an introduction to the digital identity issues and systems of online payments; e-Money Directive; Payment Services Directive; fraudulent transactions; and
issues of intellectual property online: copyright law online; geo-blocking; usage restrictions; licenses; fair use; Digital Rights Management; domain names; virtual property

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
28	122	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	22	11 X 2 hour lectures
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	6	4 x 1.5 hour seminars
Guided independent study	42	Individual reading and lecture preparation
Guided independent study	20	Seminar preparation
Guided independent study	20	Formative assessment preparation
Guided independent study	40	Summative assessment preparation

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).