Papers by Niva Elkin-Koren
The fair use privilege of United States copyright law long stood virtually alone among national c... more The fair use privilege of United States copyright law long stood virtually alone among national copyright laws in providing a flexible, open-ended copyright exception. Most countries’ copyright statutes set out a list of narrowly defined exceptions to copyright owners’ exclusive rights. By contract, U.S. fair use doctrine empowers courts to carve out an exception for an otherwise infringing use after weighing a set of equitable factors on a case-by-case basis. In the face of rapid technological change in cultural production and distribution, however, the last couple decades have witnessed widespread interest in adopting fair use in other countries. Thus far, the fair use model has been adopted in a dozen countries and considered by copyright law revision commissions in several others. Yet, ironically, U.S. copyright industries – motion picture studios, record labels, music publishers, and print publishers – and, in some instances, U.S. government representatives have steadfastly opp...
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SSRN Electronic Journal, 2016
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SSRN Electronic Journal, 2015
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SSRN Electronic Journal
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SSRN Electronic Journal, 2015
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SSRN Electronic Journal, 2014
ABSTRACT Dramatic shifts in intellectual property in recent years have created an intense debate ... more ABSTRACT Dramatic shifts in intellectual property in recent years have created an intense debate over their potential impact on research and development. While some commentators believe that game-changing legal decisions will only carry limited impact on research and developments, others have argued that such legal shifts may increase the chilling effect of uncertainty on research. This Article adds to this debate by providing empirical evidence of a ripple effect of intellectual property policy changes. The Article focuses on stem cell research as a case study. This is a highly promising, yet controversial line of research, embedding ethical, legal, and financial dilemmas, leading to frequent policy changes and legal uncertainty. The Article tracks changes in U.S. and European policies pertaining to patent rights and public funding and examines their impact on research and development. We report the findings of a comprehensive empirical study of stem cell patent applications filed between 1990-2013 in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the European Patent Office, and through the Patent Cooperation Treaty. Our findings indicate that a 2004 European decision, holding that human embryonic stem cells are not patentable in the European Patent Office, had a broad effect on patent filing in the entire stem cell field, extending to non-embryonic stem cell inventions. At the same time, changes in American stem cell federal funding policies did not influence stem cell research as dramatically. These findings are particularly striking as they shows that game-changing decisions pertaining to intellectual property may cause an impact that is broader and wider than their intended scope. The findings indicate that local patent regulation may have a global effect on patent activity extending to research and development in other countries, and an extensive effect, exceeding its intended scope. The findings also suggest that legal uncertainty may cause a chilling effect on private investments in research and development, and that intellectual property policy has a differentiated impact, affecting the private and the public sectors differently. Collectively, we call these outcomes the ripple effect of intellectual property policy. The ripple effect of intellectual property policy calls for caution among judges and policymakers in making sharp policy shifts, since such shifts may involve some unintended consequences for research and development.
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SSRN Electronic Journal, 2018
תיקון 5 לחוק זכות יוצרים מבקש להסדיר, בין היתר, סעד טכנולוגי חדש - "צו הגבלת גישה למקור תוכן... more תיקון 5 לחוק זכות יוצרים מבקש להסדיר, בין היתר, סעד טכנולוגי חדש - "צו הגבלת גישה למקור תוכן." התיקון מסמיך את בית המשפט להוציא צווי הגבלה המופנים כלפי ספק גישה לרשת תקשורת אלקטרונית, ומורים להם להגביל את הגישה למקור תוכן, כולו או חלקו, אם מתקיימת פעילות מפרה לגבי עיקר התוכן שבו. ייחודם של צווים אלה נובע מאופיו הטכנולוגי של הסעד אותו הם מציעים. ראשית, יישום הצווים נעשה על-ידי אמצעים טכנולוגיים דינמיים ובלתי שקופים. הפרטים הטכניים של אמצעי הגבלת הגישה ויישומו הטכנולוגי של הצו הם המגדירים את היקף ההגנה הניתנת בפועל לזכויותיהם המהותיות של בעלי זכות יוצרים ומשקפים את נקודת האיזון בין זכויותיהם לאילו של בעלי תכנים, ספקי גישה וציבור המשתמשים. היקף תחולתם של צווי ההגבלה, האפקטיביות שלהם והשלכותיהם על זכויות יסוד, דוגמת חופש הביטוי והזכות לפרטיות, נגזרים מפרטיה הטכניים של טכנולוגיית החסימה המשמשת ליישום הצו. נובע מכך שהאחריות לעיצוב התשתית הטכנולוגית הנחוצה לטיפול בצווי ההגבלה, על כל השלכותיה החוקתיות, מוטלת על ספקי גישה הפועלים למקסום רווחים, בכפוף לשקול דעתם העסקי. עיצוב פרטי שכזה עלול להיות דינמי, מוטה ובלתי צודק. ללא הנחייה מפורטת מצד בית המשפט מהו מנגנון ביצוע הצווים הראוי, לרבות מהם אמצעי ההגבלה המידתיים ביותר, וללא פיקוח ציבורי בדיעבד על אופן הגבלת הגישה הלכה למעשה, מתעורר חשש ממשי לפגיעה בשלטון החוק ולסטייה חדה מהאיזון העדין שבין ההגנה על זכות היוצרים לבין זכויות יסוד אחרות. שנית, צווי הגבלת גישה כפופים להליך משפטי מקוצר ופשוט, המתקיים מראש, לעיתים ללא דיון אדברסרי בעניין שאלת ההפרה. בכך מהווים צווים אלה חלק מן הנטיה הגוברת להמיר הליכים משפטיים של אכיפה, הכרוכים בבירור העובדות והכרעה בין זכויות מתחרות, בהליכי מניעה. הליכים אלה אינם מספקים ערובה מספקת להגנה על האינטרס הציבורי. המאמר מנתח את ההסדר בחוק למתן סעד טכנולוגי של צו הגבלת גישה למקור תוכן, מסביר את ייחודיותו ומצביע על הסכנות הכרוכות ביישום לא מבוקר של סעד זה מבחינת שלטון החוק וזכויות יסוד. English Abstract: Blocking orders are technological reliefs sought to disable access to websites mostly containing copyright infringing content. They are occasionally result-tailored, requiring Internet Service Providers, which are not direct parties to the legal dispute, to take the necessary digital measures to block access to a specific website. Yet, website blocking may be pursued through varied digital measures, each of which has its own special attributes in terms of exactness, efficiency and cost. The technical details of the digital measures applied ultimately define the scope and breadth of fundamental rights, including free speech and access to information. Nevertheless, biased Internet Service Providers – and not authorized public officials – are coerced to define the effective boundaries of technological reliefs, consequently reshaping the balances underlining copyright law. Pending legislation in Israel sets a formal judicial procedure for obtaining blocking orders. The proposed procedure is subject to ex-ante judicial review without providing any guidance in relation to the order’s future implementation. This is insufficient to guard against misuse of enforcement power. The practical implementation of blocking orders is concealed behind a veil of dynamic technicalities and private considerations. As they flourish on an ever-changing digital landscape, they must be adaptive to change, what makes them even less predictable. Without ex-post reevaluation of blocking orders, potential violations of fundamental rights may remain unchecked. This paper highlights the unique attributes of blocking orders, examines their procedural framework and explores their challenges to fundamental rights.
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... Fair Use Best Practices in Higher Education 2010 1 Fair Use Best Practices for Higher Educati... more ... Fair Use Best Practices in Higher Education 2010 1 Fair Use Best Practices for Higher Education Institutions: The Israeli Experience Forthcoming JOURNAL OF THE COPYRIGHT SOCIETY (2010) Amira Dotan, Niva Elkin-Koren, Orit Fischman-Afori, Ronit Haramati-Alpern * ...
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Dramatic shifts in intellectual property in recent years have created an intense debate over thei... more Dramatic shifts in intellectual property in recent years have created an intense debate over their potential impact on research and development. While some commentators believe that game-changing legal decisions will only carry limited impact on research and developments, others have argued that such legal shifts may increase the chilling effect of uncertainty on research. This Article adds to this debate by providing empirical evidence of a ripple effect of intellectual property policy changes. The Article focuses on stem cell research as a case study. This is a highly promising, yet controversial line of research, embedding ethical, legal, and financial dilemmas, leading to frequent policy changes and legal uncertainty. The Article tracks changes in U.S. and European policies pertaining to patent rights and public funding and examines their impact on research and development. We report the findings of a comprehensive empirical study of stem cell patent applications filed between 1...
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Learning In a Networked Society
In the world of print, textbooks were the most important tools for dictating what and how student... more In the world of print, textbooks were the most important tools for dictating what and how student learn in schools. The introduction of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), however, gave rise to eTextbooks – a multi-modal, hardware mediated, and connectable, curriculum material. Indeed, the emergence of eTextbook creates fascinating opportunities for teaching and learning, but at the same time, it poses new challenges for both educational practices and policy making by revolutionizing the traditional pedagogical practices, classroom culture and the textbook publishing industry. These new challenges require rethinking and reexamining the appropriateness of the institutional and legal norms which govern the use and authorship of textbooks. This paper identifies the new challenges introduced by eTextbooks, and offers some insights on the policy and legal implications.
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More and more people around the world are spending an increasing portion of their time surfing th... more More and more people around the world are spending an increasing portion of their time surfing the Internet or operating in Cyberspace. In the past few years Cyberspace has become an integral part of people’s everyday lives. People get their information in Cyberspace, obtain their entertainment there, do business in Cyberspace and even
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SSRN Electronic Journal
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Oxford Handbook of Online Intermediary Liability
This chapter describes three ways in which content moderation by online intermediaries challenges... more This chapter describes three ways in which content moderation by online intermediaries challenges the rule of law: it blurs the distinction between private interests and public responsibilities; it delegates the power to make social choices about content legitimacy to opaque algorithms; and it circumvents the constitutional safeguard of the separation of powers. The chapter further discusses the barriers to accountability in online content moderation by intermediaries, including the dynamic nature of algorithmic content moderation using machine learning; barriers arising from the partialness of data and data floods; and trade secrecy which protects the algorithmic decision-making process. Finally, the chapter proposes a strategy to overcome these barriers to accountability of online intermediaries, namely ‘black box tinkering’: a reverse-engineering methodology that could be used by governmental agencies, as well as social activists, as a check on private content moderation. After d...
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The Oxford Handbook of Institutions of International Economic Governance and Market Regulation
In recent years, there is a growing use of algorithmic law enforcement by online intermediaries. ... more In recent years, there is a growing use of algorithmic law enforcement by online intermediaries. Algorithmic enforcement by private intermediaries is located at the interface between public law and private ordering. It often reflects risk management and commercial interests of online intermediaries, effectively converging law enforcement and adjudication powers, at the hands of a small number of mega platforms. At the same time, algorithmic governance also plays a critical role in shaping access to online content and facilitating public discourse. Yet, online intermediaries are hardly held accountable for algorithmic enforcement, even though they may reach erroneous decisions. Developing proper accountability mechanisms is hence vital to create a check on algorithmic enforcement. Accordingly, relying on lessons drawn from algorithmic copyright enforcement by online intermediaries, this chapter demonstrates the accountability deficiencies in algorithmic copyright enforcement; maps th...
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Copyright Law in an Age of Limitations and Exceptions
The rights of users of copyrighted materials are growing in significance. This is the result of f... more The rights of users of copyrighted materials are growing in significance. This is the result of fundamental changes in the creative ecosystem that pull in opposite directions: on the one hand, the flourishing of user-generated content places individual users at the forefront of creative processes, strengthening the need to facilitate unlicensed use of creative materials. On the other hand, digital distribution, cloud computing and mobile Internet strengthen restrictions on the freedom of users to access, experience, transform and share creative materials. These changes necessitate a user-rights approach to copyright law. Users’ interests are often examined through the prism of Limitations and Exceptions (L&E) to copyright. However, this narrow view overlooks the users’ critical role in serving the goals of copyright law and may therefore ultimately lead to inefficient outcomes. A user-rights approach holds that permissible uses under copyright law should be articulated and treated as rights. It deviates from the L&E approach at the theoretical level, with some potential doctrinal implications. At the theoretical level, this approach shifts the locus of copyright analysis from author’s rights to the creative process, emphasizing the role of users as partners in promoting copyright objectives. Rather than being "parasites" that benefit — unjustly — from limits on the just rewards of authors, users actively participate in promoting the creation, dissemination and use of cultural works. A user-rights approach further suggests that to achieve its goals, copyright law should be drafted, interpreted and applied in ways that consider the rights and duties of both users and authors. Permissible uses that serve the objectives of copyright law, should therefore be defined as rights rather than as a legal defense. The purpose of this chapter is to offer a theoretical framework, for developing a jurisprudence of user rights. It demonstrates how the recognition of the role of users in promoting the purpose of copyright law could change our perspective on the scope of copyright protection and what should be considered permissible use. The user rights approach does not purport to offer a detailed prescription on the desirable level of unlicensed use. It does offer, however, a theoretical framework for deciding what should be the scope of permissible use in each particular case.
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American University of International Law Review, 2016
I. INTRODUCTIONAccess to knowledge is fundamental for thriving in a digital economy and digital s... more I. INTRODUCTIONAccess to knowledge is fundamental for thriving in a digital economy and digital society.1 We live in an era of unprecedented access to online materials and can instantly access movies on Netflix, browse books on Google Books, and listen to numerous music clips on YouTube. However, access to knowledge remains a major challenge. Despite the fact that everything seems available online, it is not "free" in a way that can ensure freedom. In fact, over the past two decades, users' freedom to access, experience, transform and share creative materials has constantly declined.Much of the content available online is locked behind paywalls.2 You cannot read the content without paying a fee or purchasing a subscription.3 Full-time academic scholars, researchers and students may not even notice these barriers. They rely on their institutional subscriptions, which make most books and academic journals available on their systems. But some research institutions, especi...
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Online intermediaries have become a focal point of content moderation. They may enable or disable... more Online intermediaries have become a focal point of content moderation. They may enable or disable access by removing or blocking controversial content, or by terminating users’ accounts altogether. Consequently, governments, rightholders and users around the world are pressing online intermediaries to hone their gatekeeping functions and censor content amounting to hate speech, inciting materials, or copyright infringement. The rising pressure on online platforms to block, remove, monitor, or filter illegitimate content is fostering the deployment of technological measures to identify potentially objectionable content, which may expose platforms to legal liability or raise a public outcry. As a result, online intermediaries are effectively performing three roles at the same time: they act like a legislature, in defining what constitute legitimate content on their platform, like judges who determine the legitimacy of content in particular instances, and like administrative agencies w...
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Copyright enforcement was one of the early challenges to the rule of law on the internet and has ... more Copyright enforcement was one of the early challenges to the rule of law on the internet and has shaped its development since the early 1990s. The Notice and Takedown (N&TD) regime, enacted in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, offered online intermediaries immunity from liability in exchange for removing allegedly infringing materials upon receiving notice from rights holders. The unequivocal power of rights holders to request removal and the strong incentives for online intermediaries to remove content upon receiving a removal request have turned the N&TD regime into a robust clean-up mechanism for removing any unwarranted content. The N&TD procedure applies to private facilities, makes use of proprietary software, and is administered by private companies. This enforcement procedure is nontransparent and lacks sufficient legal or public oversight. Unlike copyright enforcement in court, where decisions are made public, we know very little about the actual implementation of the N...
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Cyberspace Law eJournal, 2015
The rights of users of copyrighted materials are growing in significance. This is the result of f... more The rights of users of copyrighted materials are growing in significance. This is the result of fundamental changes in the creative ecosystem that pull in opposite directions: on the one hand, the flourishing of user-generated content places individual users at the forefront of creative processes, strengthening the need to facilitate unlicensed use of creative materials. On the other hand, digital distribution, cloud computing and mobile Internet strengthen restrictions on the freedom of users to access, experience, transform and share creative materials. These changes necessitate a user-rights approach to copyright law. Users’ interests are often examined through the prism of Limitations and Exceptions (L&E) to copyright. However, this narrow view overlooks the users’ critical role in serving the goals of copyright law and may therefore ultimately lead to inefficient outcomes. A user-rights approach holds that permissible uses under copyright law should be articulated and treated a...
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Papers by Niva Elkin-Koren