The Environment of Electronic Commerce Essay Example

The Environment of Electronic Commerce Essay Example The Environment of Electronic Commerce Paper The Environment of Electronic Commerce Paper These elements have helped governments create the legal concept of jurisdiction in the physical world. Because the four elements exist in somewhat different forms on the Internet, he jurisdiction rules that work so well in the physical world do not always work well in the online world. 2. In about 300 words, describe the differences between subject-matter jurisdiction and personal jurisdiction. * Subject-matter jurisdiction is a courts authority to decide a particular type of dispute. For example, in the IS. S, federal courts have subject-matter jurisdiction over issues governed by federal law (such as bankruptcy, copyright, patent and federal tax matters) and state courts have subject-matter jurisdiction over issues governed by state laws (such as professional licensing and state tax matters). If the parties to a contract are both located in the same state, a state court has subject- matter jurisdiction over disputes that arise from the terms of that contract. The rules for determining whether a court has subject-matter jurisdiction are clear and easy to apply. Few disputes arise over subject-matter jurisdiction. * Personal jurisdiction is, in general, determined by the residence of the parties. A court has personal jurisdiction over a case if the defendant is a resident of the state in which the court is located. In such cases, the determination of personal jurisdiction is straightforward. However, an out-of- state person or corporation can also voluntarily submit to the jurisdiction of a particular state court by agreeing to do so in writing or by taking certain actions in the state. 3. The advantages and disadvantages of issuing business process patents have been hotly debated by legal scholars and business people. One compromise proposal advanced by Jeff Bozos, founder of Amazon. Com, is to allow the issuance of business patents, but only allow them to be effective for a short time, perhaps two or three years. In about 300 words, present logical ND factual arguments that support the issuance of such limited-term business process patents. * The business process patent, which protects a specific set Of procedures for conducting a particular business activity, is quite controversial. Many legal experts and business researchers believe that the issuance of business process patents grants the recipients unfair monopoly power and is an inappropriate extension of patent law. In 1999, Amazon. Com sued Barnes and Noble for using a process on its Web site that was similar to the I-click method. The case was settled out of court in 2002, but the terms f the settlement were not disclosed. In 2007, a federal judge entered a final judgment of $30 million against eBay in a business process patent case. A company that makes a business of buying patents and attempting to enforcing them, Merchantmen, had sue eBay for its use of a fixed price sales option that eBay calls Buy It Now. Merchantmen believed that one of its patents covered the mechanism of offering a fixed price option in an online auction. Merchantmen is continuing to press for an injunction (in addition to the monetary damages already awarded) that would prevent eBay from using he feature at all. 4. Define product disparagement. In two or three paragraphs, present an example of product disparagement. A defamatory statement is a statement that is false and that injures the reputation of another person or company. Product disparagement is defined as: if a defamatory Statement injures the reputation off product or service instead of a person. * In some countries, even a true and honest comparison of products may give rise to product disparagement. Because the difference justifiable criticism and defamation can be hard to de termine, commercial Web sites should consider he specific laws in their jurisdiction (and consider consulting a lawyer) before making negative, evaluative statements about other persons or products. . In about 300 words, explain the idea of nexus. Why is it an important concept in state and international taxation? In what ways is it similar to jurisdiction? * A government acquires the power to tax a business when that business establishes a connection with the area controlled by the government. For example, a business that is located in Kansas has a connection with the state of Kansas and is subject to Kansas taxes. If that many opens a branch in Arizona, it forms a connection with Arizona and becomes subject to Arizona taxes on the portion of its business that occurs in Arizona. This connection between a tax-paying entity and a government is called a nexus. The concept of nexus is similar in many ways to the concept of personal jurisdiction. The activities that create nexus in the U. S. Are determined by state law and thus vary from state to state. Its issues have been frequently litigated and the resulting common law is fairly complex. Determining nexus can be difficult when a company conducts only a few activities in or has minimal contact with the state. In such cases, its advisable for the company to obtain the services of a professional tax advisor. Companies that do business in more than one country face national nexus issues. If a company undertakes sufficient activities in a particular country, it establishes nexus with that country and becomes liable for filling tax returns for that country. The laws and regulations that determine national nexus are different in each country. Companies will find the services of a professional tax lawyer or accountant who has experience in international taxation to be valuable.