Digital Consumers and the Law—Towards a Cohesive European Framework

Produced jointly for the European Commission by an interdisciplinary team of researchers at the Centre for the Study of European Contract Law and the Institute for Information Law, both at the U. of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, this volume analyzes the extent the European Directive on Consumer Rights and the proposed Regulation on a Common European Sales Law are suitable for addressing issues associated with digital content contracts in a manner that balances the interests of both consumers and the digital industries. Nine chapters discuss the main issues of how digital content markets challenge established concepts and rules in consumer law; the question of whether to classify digital content as goods, services, or a separate category in its own right; the collapsing distinction between consumers and producers of digital content; issues associated with existing pre-contractual information requirements for digital content; the application of the conformity test to digital content; the treatment of the underage consumer; and connections between digital consumer law and fundamental rights, such as the right to freedom of expression or the right to privacy. Annotation c2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)