Does regulation of illegal content in the EU need reconsideration in light of blockchains?

Maurice Schellekens

Does regulation of illegal content in the EU need reconsideration in light of blockchains?

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Abstract

Blockchains are increasingly being used for content distribution, sometimes as an unwanted side-effect of blockchain applications that have other primary purposes, sometimes as intended content distribution. The typical characteristics of a blockchain such as its claimed immutability raise new questions as to what preventive measures can reasonably be demanded from blockchain intermediaries, and administrators of nodes in particular. The article asks whether the exemptions introduced in the Directive on electronic commerce can be applied, what mitigating or preventive measures other than Notice-and-Takedown can be applied and how governmental regulators should react.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	292-305
Number of pages	14
Journal	International journal of law and information technology
Volume	27
Issue number	3
Publication status	Published - 2019

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EU

regulation

electronic commerce

exemption

Keywords

blockchain, content distribution, liability, preventive measures, EU, Directive on electronic commerce

Cite this

Schellekens, M. (2019). Does regulation of illegal content in the EU need reconsideration in light of blockchains? International journal of law and information technology, 27(3), 292-305.

Schellekens, Maurice. / Does regulation of illegal content in the EU need reconsideration in light of blockchains?. In: International journal of law and information technology. 2019 ; Vol. 27, No. 3. pp. 292-305.

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title = "Does regulation of illegal content in the EU need reconsideration in light of blockchains?",

abstract = "Blockchains are increasingly being used for content distribution, sometimes as an unwanted side-effect of blockchain applications that have other primary purposes, sometimes as intended content distribution. The typical characteristics of a blockchain such as its claimed immutability raise new questions as to what preventive measures can reasonably be demanded from blockchain intermediaries, and administrators of nodes in particular. The article asks whether the exemptions introduced in the Directive on electronic commerce can be applied, what mitigating or preventive measures other than Notice-and-Takedown can be applied and how governmental regulators should react.",

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author = "Maurice Schellekens",

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Schellekens, M 2019, 'Does regulation of illegal content in the EU need reconsideration in light of blockchains?', International journal of law and information technology, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 292-305.