Introducing the Open Clause to improve copyright flexibility in cyberspace? Analysis and commentary on the proposed “two-step test” in the Third Amendment to the Copyright Law of the PRC,in comparison with the EU and the US

The so called “three-step test”, that the limitations and exceptions of copyright shall be allowed in certain special cases, provided that they do not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the author, grants copyright flexibilities to balance the interests of all stakeholders, especially within the European system of circumscribed limitations and exceptions. This is essential for the domain of computer law, confronted by rapid and unpredictable global technological developments, and is, thus, enshrined in the most important international intellectual property (IP) treaties. Through the proposed third amendment to the Copyright Law of the PRC, the legislature intends to adopt this test while also introducing an open-ended list of limitations and exceptions that constitutes a China-specific “two-step test.” This contravenes prima facie the thesis endorsed by the WTO Panel in the case concerning Section 110(5) of the US Copyright Act in 2000. In contrast, court decisions in China frequently apply the fair use doctrine of US copyright law, neglecting to consider its peculiar context of the US common law tradition and, thus, unduly expanding the Chinese courts' discretionary power.This paper summarizes the case law in China and takes a comparative approach to address the divergence between the judicial application of cyber copyright law and the existing legislation. It suggests revising the proposed Article 43 of the Copyright Law of the PRC to capture the due interpretation of the three-step test, thereby finessing the delineation between rights protection and free use with the compensation of remuneration under the principle of proportionality. It argues that transplanting the US fair use doctrine into Chinese copyright law is feasible, but with the preconditions of endeavouring to strengthen judicial reform to integrate the IP adjudication systems, enhancing the coherence and efficiency of copyright enforcement, and facilitating consistent dialogues between scholars, practitioners, and lawmakers.     

A Neoconservative Consensus in Russia?

This article analyzes the ideational consensus that has taken shape in contemporary Russian politics, including its key components, and factors both of stability and of potential erosion. Noting the extraordinary durability of this consensus, which is supported by factors including the duration of the regime itself, its support among elites and the bureaucracy, effective mobilizational propaganda and conservative orientations among the middle classes and dominant public opinion, the author draws attention to several factors – as yet less evident – that may in the future change the situation. Among these are the volatility of public opinion, potential intra-elite dynamics, and the internal contradictions of the neo-conservative idea itself.     

传统与超越——公安机关对虚拟社会管理研究

当前我国既处于发展的重要战略机遇期,又处于社会矛盾凸显期,以现实社会结构为基础,通过数字化形式展示出来的虚拟社会,在为人们的生产生活带来便捷、浓缩社会空间、拉近人与人距离的同时,也带来诸多新问题.作为社会治安治理的主要行政机关,公安机关在对虚拟社会的管理中承担主要作用,扮演重要角色.如何加强对虚拟社会的引导和管理,是对构建以人为本的和谐社会的新考验.     

On Individual Business System in Normal Market

Individual business is a business entity system created in the practice of reform and opening up in China. It is the largest market entity in China, and its vitality lies in the "family culture" characteristics of Chinese society. Although individual businesses have been confirmed by law at all levels, they still have transitional and non-normative doubts. In some places, individual businesses have been transformed into enterprises. Individual businesses take advantage of the natural credit bond, low cost of organization and coordination, and are targeted to meet the needs of the market, which is conducive to absorbing employment and balancing wealth, easy to disperse and digest business risks, and has a competitive advantage in the low-end market. In a normal market, the rational choice of the parties concerned should be respected, the hierarchical structure of the market should be adapted, the complete ecology of market subjects should be maintained, and the reform of individual enterprises should be prudently implemented.     

虚拟财产应纳入夫妻共同财产——兼论网络游戏中虚拟财产的归属

随着网络游戏的普及,网络游戏逐渐成为某些人的一种职业,在夫妻生活中夫（妻）一方或双方玩网游的也不在少数,关于网络游戏中的虚拟财产之争已频繁出现。无形财产在婚姻家庭领域顺应时代潮流被纳入夫妻共同财产已是大势所趋,在离婚时应当由专门的评估机构对网络游戏虚拟财产价值进行评估,将其作为夫妻共同财产进行分割。     

高等学校“概论”课开放式教学方式探索——“听、读、评、写、研”教学模式实践及启示

在“毛泽东思想和中国特色社会主义理论体系概论”课程教学中开展“听、说、读、评、研”教学活动,是深化教学改革,培养创新型人才的可行途径之一。在教学中结合课程内容让学生读一些相关的书目,搞一些同学们有兴趣又能参与其中的活动,使同学们在了解历史但又不脱离现实生活的状态下,既掌握了知识又活跃了课堂气氛,提高了同学们的理论素养以及分析问题和解决问题的能力,从而坚定在中国共产党的领导下走中国特色社会主义道路的理想信念。     

Cyberspace,simulation, artificial intelligence,affectionate machines and being human

Abstract

This article focuses on the question whether the technologically enabled advent of ‘virtual reality’ or ‘cyberspace’ has a significant impact on human experience of the world. Gilbert Germain's work on Virilio and Baudrillard gives greater insight in this regard, specifically regarding cyberspace as the new ‘frontier’, and focuses on the alienating effects of cyberspace regarding the human life-world. Turkle's recent work regarding robotics similarly points to a fundamental shift in human attitudes towards ‘embodied’ artificial intelligence, especially concerning its capacity for affectivity, which further marks a turning away from the complexity of human relationships in favour of supposedly uncomplicated ‘machine relationships’. Derrida enables one to better understand the changing relation between humans and machines in terms of the reconfiguration of human subjectivity. Together with Turkle's work in this domain, it points to a surprising ‘reconfiguration’ of conceptions regarding being human. Finally, Feenberg's retrospective on the fraught relations between humans and technology, as reflected in various fictional and theoretical works, as well as social developments, provides a suitable conclusion, given his affirmative remarks on the prospects of human autonomy in relation to the Internet.     

Arab Muslim Attitudes Toward the West: Cultural,Social, and Political Explanations

We utilize pooled data from Zogby International's 2002 Zogby, James. 2002. What Arabs Think: Values Beliefs and Concerns, Utica NY: Zogby International.  [Google Scholar] Arab Values Survey (carried out in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and UAE) in order to test for “cultural,” “social” and/or international “political” influences on Arab Muslim attitudes toward “Western” countries (Canada, France, Germany, UK, and USA). We find little support for “cultural” hypotheses to the effect that hostility to the West is a mark-up on Muslim and/or Arab identity. We find only limited support for “social” hypotheses that suggest that hostility to the West is predicted by socioeconomic deprivation, youth, and/or being male. We find the strongest support for a lone “political” hypothesis: hostility toward specific Western countries is predicted by those countries' recent and visible international political actions in regard to salient international issues (e.g., Western foreign policies toward Palestine).     

Analysis on the Quantity of Offence of "Fraud Loan"

“Fraud Loan” is a new criminal phenomenon that started to appear recently. Its basic form is fraud, but more than ten types of crimes such as provocation, forced trading, extortion, robbery or kidnapping may be committed just because of the diversity of ways of obtaining property. To identify the number of crimes convicted by “Fraud Loan”, three principles should be adhered to. Firstly, all acts of the perpetrators should be evaluated comprehensively so as to maximize the protection of legal interests. Secondly, it is necessary to prohibit repeated evaluation to protect the human rights of the accused. Thirdly, we should make an overall evaluation to conform to the cognitive regulation. When the act of purpose and means of the perpetrators violate different crimes respectively, the heavier one should be chosen. Those who directly “claim debt” through violence, coercion, kidnapping, etc., are escalated into serious crimes such as robbery and kidnapping. If perpetrators violate other legal interests of the victim in addition to the crime of property, they will also be punished for multiple crimes.     

Anti-Apartheid Solidarity Networks and the Production of Come Back,Africa

In 1957, American filmmaker Lionel Rogosin arrived in Cape Town, South Africa, determined to make a film about apartheid. “Anti-apartheid Solidarity Networks and the Production of Come Back, Africa” discusses the film’s historical and cultural significance, and— a topic which deserves more attention— the film’s production. The article examines the interconnected and international nature of early anti-apartheid activism. International movements against apartheid may have been relatively small between 1957 and up until March of 1960, but Come Back Africa’s production shows that anti-apartheid activists and artists were becoming increasingly connected in a transnational web spanning the Atlantic with hubs in South Africa, Europe, and the United States. In the case of Come Back, Africa, relationships forged between Rogosin, black South African artists-activists (such as Lewis Nkosi, William “Bloke” Modisane, and Miriam Makeba) and white liberal anti-apartheid activists (including Father Trevor Huddleston, Reverend Michael Scott, and Mary Benson) proved mutually beneficial.