Mobile communication and the protection of children
Ong, R.Y.C.
Citation
Ong, R. Y. C. (2010, April 22). Mobile communication and the protection of children.
Meijers-reeks. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/15349
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Mobile Communication and the Protection of Children
dissertation series no 2010-10
The research reported in this thesis has been carried out under the auspicies of SIKS, the Dutch Research School for Information and Knowledge Systems.
Lay-out: Anne-Marie Krens – Tekstbeeld – Oegstgeest
© R.Y.C. Ong / Leiden University Press, 2010 ISBN 978 90 8728 080 2
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Mobile Communication and the Protection of Children
PROEFSCHRIFT
ter verkrijging van
de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden,
op gezag van de Rector Magnificus prof. mr. P.F. van der Heijden, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties
te verdedigen op donderdag 22 april 2010 klokke 11.15 uur
door
Rebecca Ong Yoke Chan
geboren te Maleisië in 1961
Promotiecommissie:
Promotor: prof. dr. H.J. van den Herik Co-promoter: mr. dr. B.W. Schermer Overige leden: prof. mr. A.W. Hins
prof. mr. A.H.J. Schmidt
prof. dr. F.M.T. Brazier (Technische Universiteit Delft) prof. mr. drs. C. Stuurman (Universiteit van Tilburg) prof. dr. P.M. Valkenburg (Universiteit van Amsterdam) mr. dr. G.J. Zwenne
Preface
“How is your Phd going?” and “When do you finish?” are two stressful questions a PhD student faces and dreads. There are times when I am sure a PhD student will ask himself why he1is putting himself through such an
‘ordeal’.
For me, the primary objective for writing a thesis arose from the observa- tion of the transformative trends in communicative practices amongst the younger generation. This is due in no small part to the development of new communication technology and its accompanying devices and applications.
In recent years there has been a rise in the up-take of mobile phones.
Amongst the younger generation, a contributing factor to the rise and rapid diffusion is the mobile phone’s personal and liberating qualities in addition to its varied communicative expressive applications. While this has breathed fresh dimensions to the social structure and independence of these youngsters, we are well aware that the technology can be used for purposes that are different from those purposes that were originally intended. Thus, it is neces- sary to appreciate and understand the impact of mobile communication techno- logy on children and young people. There is also an urgent need for the regulators, civic society and the relevant stakeholders to respond responsibly to the challenges that arise as a result of the use and abuse of mobile communi- cation technology.
I wish to record my sincere appreciation to the following people persons who supported me throughout. My supervisor, Professor H. Jaap van den Herik has patiently and meticulously read, questioned, commented, the text many times. He ensured that the text is continuously improved. I am grateful for his support, guidance, and advice. Moreover, I acknowledge Dr. Bart Schermer, my co-supervisor, for his invaluable comments. A special mention also goes out to Bni. Yung-ven, Shanthi Sabapathy, Tasha and Ashton for their continuing love, patience, and support.
Finally, I would like to show my deepest gratitude and love to my mentor and Guru, Paramahansa Yogananda without whom this project would have never been remotely possible.
Rebecca Ong Hong Kong/Leiden, February 2010
1 For brevity, I use ‘he’ and ‘his’ whenever ‘he’ or ‘she’ and ‘his’ and ‘her’ are meant.
Table of contents
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS XV
LIST OF FIGURES XIX
1 MOBILE COMMUNICATION AND THE PROTECTION OF CHILDREN 1 1.1 Two challenges of new generation mobile devices 2 1.2 The Internet as a modern form of communication 3
1.2.1 The first network 4
1.2.2 The Internet 4
Open-network architecture 5
The protocols and the World Wide Web 7
A collection of communities 9
1.2.3 Expanded communities 9
1.3 The mobile Internet 11
1.3.1 The benefits of mobile Internet 12
1.3.2 The risks of mobile Internet 12
1.3.3 Controlling the Internet 13
1.4 A broad range of beneficial activities 14
1.4.1 Unfavourable activities 15
1.4.2 The World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) 15 1.4.3 Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
(ICANN) (and four other organisations) 17
1.4.4 The undefined rules of the Internet 18
1.4.5 Limitations of direct state intervention 19
1.5 Problem statement 19
1.5.1 The Internet: the apex of modern day communication 19
1.5.2 The continuous transformation 20
1.5.3 The protection of children on-line 21
1.5.4 Economic issues versus moral issues 22
1.5.5 Possible regulatory issues 23
1.5.6 A two-folded problem statement 24
1.6 Research questions 24
1.7 Research methodology 25
1.8 The structure of the thesis 25
VIII Table of contents
2 MOBILE TELEPHONY 27
2.1 The development of mobile technology 28
Three major generations 28
Emphasis in on applications 29
Experience of new technologies 29
2.2 Telecommunication infrastructure in Hong Kong 30 2.2.1 The infrastructure: mobile phone services 30
2.2.2 The players 31
A: Mobile network operators (MNOs) 31
B: Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) 31
2.2.3 Open access strategy 33
2.3 Mobile content as new revenue 34
2.4 Platforms for delivery of content 34
2.4.1 Content produced by MNO 35
2.4.2 Content produced by third party in partnership with MNO 35
2.5 Chapter conclusion 36
3 CONVERGENCE OF TECHNOLOGIES 37
3.1 What is convergence? 37
3.2 Five factors that fuel convergence 39
3.3 Objectives of government policies in the communication sector 41
3.4 Convergence: its benefits and concerns 42
3.4.1 Benefits 42
3.4.2 Concerns 43
3.5 Regulatory challenges to convergence 44
3.6 A regulator’s responsibilities and the position of Hong Kong 45
3.6.1 Three-fold responsibilities 45
3.6.2 Telecommunication in Hong Kong 46
3.7 Regulatory convergence in Hong Kong 47
3.7.1 A unified regulator of other jurisdictions 47
A: The United Kingdom 48
B: Australia 48
C: Malaysia 49
3.7.2 Hong Kong’s proposed Communication Authority 49
3.8 Responding to the challenges 51
3.8.1 The general position 51
3.8.2 The position in Hong Kong 52
3.8.3 Our position 53
3.8.4 Society’s moral watchdog 56
3.8.5 The Green Dam Youth Escort 56
3.9 Chapter conclusion 57
Table of contents IX
4 MOBILE COMMUNICATION AND POTENTIAL HAZARDS 59
4.1 Diffusion of mobile telephony 62
4.1.1 Anytime, anywhere 63
4.1.2 Staying in perpetual contact 64
4.1.3 Safety and security 65
4.1.4 Section conclusion 66
4.2 The younger generation and mobile telephony 66
4.2.1 Personal expression 68
4.2.2 Independence 70
4.2.3 Social networking and relationships 70
4.2.4 Common youth traits 71
4.3 New communication technology – the potential hazards 72
4.3.1 The positive effects 72
4.3.2 A multitude of hazards 72
4.3.3 Two main hazards for end users 74
4.3.4 The greatest hazard is not quantifiable 75
4.4 Child protection concerns 76
4.5 Content 77
4.5.1 Two expressions of content 78
A: Illegal content 78
B: Harmful material 79
4.5.2 A matter of grave concern 80
4.5.3 Inappropriate materials 80
4.5.4 Appetite for adult material 80
4.5.5 Pornography 81
4.5.6 Incidence of exposure to pornography 82
A: Involuntary and accidental visits 82
B: Unwanted exposure 83
C: Significance of studies 84
4.5.7 Mobile gaming 85
4.6 Contact 86
4.6.1 Sourcing children and grooming 87
A: Anonymity 87
B: Interactivity 88
4.6.2 Unwanted sexual solicitation 88
4.6.3 Purpose of paedophiles’ activities 89
4.6.4 Cyber-bullying 90
4.7 Commercialism 92
4.7.1 Spam 93
4.7.2 Premium-rate services 94
4.7.3 Younger generations as target market 95
4.8 Chapter conclusion 97
X Table of contents
5 MOBILE COMMUNICATION:ITS IMPACT ON CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE 99
5.1 Impact of the use of mobile technology 99
5.1.1 The lack of research and publications 100
5.1.2 Three definitions 101
5.2 Exposure to pornography 101
5.2.1 The consequences 103
5.2.2 A comparison with old observations 105
5.2.3 Conclusions for the on-line world 106
5.3 Violence in mobile gaming 107
5.4 The power of cyber-bullying and unwanted sexual solicitation 110
5.4.1 The seven effects of bullying 111
5.4.2 On-line bullying 112
5.4.3 Tragic incidents and suicide 113
5.4.4 Unwanted sexual solicitation 114
5.5 Mobile spam 114
5.6 Aggressive marketing strategy 115
5.6.1 Research performed so far 115
5.6.2 Four important findings 116
5.6.3 Consumption habits 117
5.7 Chapter conclusion 117
5.7.1 Results of our investigations 118
5.7.2 Our conclusion 119
5.8 An answer to RQ1 120
6 REGULATORY ARRANGEMENTS AND THE PROTECTION OF CHILDREN 123
6.1 Point of departure is control 124
6.1.1 Three segments of mobile entertainment 124 6.1.2 Control exercised over mobile content 125
6.2 Two legislative initiatives 126
6.3 Regulatory framework under the Control of Obscene and Indecent
Articles Ordinance (COIAO) 127
6.3.1 Scope of COIAO 128
6.3.2 Definitions 128
6.3.3 Classification categories 129
6.3.4 Roles of three government departments 130
6.4 Penalties under the COIAO 131
A: Penalties 131
B: Defences 132
6.5 Appeals under the COIAO 132
6.6 Judicial decisions 135
6.7 Code of practice 137
6.8 The Prevention of Child Pornography Ordinance (PCPO) 138
6.8.1 Offences under the PCPO 139
6.8.2 Defences 140
6.8.3 Decisions under the PCPO 141
Table of contents XI
6.9 The Unsolicited Electronic Messages Ordinance (UEMO) 144
6.10 Regulatory regime for privacy 147
6.11 From 2000 – 2009 149
A: COIAO 149
B: PCPO 150
C: UEMO 150
6.12 Other unresolved matters 151
6.13 An answer to RQ2 152
7 COMPARATIVE JURISDICTIONS 153
7.1 Australia 154
7.1.1 Control 155
7.1.2 Schedule 5 155
7.1.3 Codes of Practice 157
7.1.4 Complaints mechanism 157
7.1.5 Classification schemes 158
7.2 Australia’s new industry content code 160
7.2.1 Access restriction 161
7.2.2 Take-down order 161
7.2.3 Chat services 162
7.2.4 Complaints mechanism 162
7.2.5 The Code’s compliance 162
7.3 Europe 164
7.3.1 The European Framework for Safer Mobile Use 168 7.3.2 Guiding elements of the European framework 169
7.3.3 Shared collective responsibility 170
7.3.4 Classification scheme 170
7.3.5 Self-regulation 171
A: The UK code of practice 171
B: Independent Mobile Classification Body (IMCB) 172
C: Internet watch Foundation (IWF) 175
7.4 Content regulatory models 176
A: Broadcasting-centric model 176
B: Converged content model 177
7.5 Measuring regulatory efficacy 179
7.6 Hong Kong: regulatory reality 182
7.6.1 A deficient system 183
7.6.2 The existing content regulatory regime 184
7.6.3 Observations of the COIAO 185
7.6.4 Observations of the HKISPA’s code of practice 186
7.7 An answer to RQ3 188
A: Eight lessons 188
B: Three additional elements 191
7.7.1 The Hong Kong position 193
XII Table of contents
7.8 Our proposals 194
7.8.1 The historical origins of the Hong Kong Chinese community 194
7.8.2 Hong Kong’s style of governance 195
7.9 Chapter conclusion 196
8 REGULATORY PARADIGMS 199
8.1 Cyberlibertarian theory 201
8.2 Wither state control? - Inherent limitations 203
8.2.1 Territorial nature of laws 204
8.2.2 Causing the rippling effect 205
8.2.3 Out of range, out of control 207
8.3 De facto borders 207
8.4 Internet fluidity and regulatory arbitrage 209
8.4.1 Internet fluidity 209
8.4.2 Two possible regulations 210
8.5 The role of regulation and its strategies 210
8.5.1 A view on regulation 211
8.5.2 A wider view on regulation by using a regulatory strategy 212
8.6 The command control approach 214
8.6.1 Challenges to the command control approach 214 8.6.2 Benefits of the command control approach 216
8.7 Modalities of regulation 217
8.7.1 Three essential elements 217
8.7.2 Four modalities 217
8.7.3 Benkler’s three-layer approach and Lessig’s ‘Code is Law’
theory 218
8.7.4 The relation between Benkler and Lessig 219
8.8 Internet filtering 220
8.8.1 The merits and de-merits of filtering 221
8.9 Freedom of speech 222
8.10 Privacy of children and young people 224
8.10.1 Social networking sites 225
8.10.2 Marketing activities 226
A: The position in the US 227
B: The position in Europe 228
8.11 Murray and Scott’s hybrid theory 229
8.12 Relevance of Murray and Scott’s hybrid theory 231
8.13 Fragmentation of society and subsystems 233
8.13.1 Teubner’s systems theory 233
8.13.2 Ayers and Braithwaite’s theory 235
8.14 Strengths and weaknesses of the theories propounded 235
8.15 Chapter conclusion 236
Table of contents XIII
9 SELF REGULATION 239
9.1 Self regulation – what it is and what it is not 240
9.2 Five types of self regulation 241
9.3 Benefits of self regulation 247
9.4 Two illustrations 249
9.4.1 The state’s inadequacy 249
9.4.2 The ineffectiveness of law in regulating content 250 9.4.3 Four benefits point towards self regulation 251 9.5 Criticisms of adopting a self-regulatory approach 251
9.6 Conditions for effective self regulation 253
9.6.1 Self regulation as an alternative regulatory mechanism in
Hong Kong 257
9.7 A combination of approaches 257
9.8 Criticisms of responsive regulation theory 260
9.8.1 Smart regulation theory 260
9.8.2 Contrasting opinions leads to conclusions 262
9.9 Codes of practice 263
9.9.1 The code’s framework 265
A: Coverage 265
B: Content 266
C: Communication 267
D: Compliance 267
9.10 Chapter conclusion 267
10 GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION–THE NEED FOR REGULATORY
ALTERNATIVES? 269
10.1 Justification for regulation 269
10.1.1 A straightforward reasoning 269
10.1.2 A further discourse on content regulation 271
10.1.3 A checklist of eight questions 272
10.2 Guiding principles for regulating content 273
10.2.1 Community standards 274
10.2.2 Protection from harm 275
10.2.3 Informed choices and decision-making 275
Accurate information 276
10.2.4 Complaints procedure 278
10.3 Good regulation 278
10.4 Community participation 279
10.5 An alternative to state regulation 281
10.6 A mixture of controls 283
10.7 An answer to RQ4 285
A: Regulatory purpose 286
B: Regulatory means 286
C: Regulatory framework 286
XIV Table of contents
10.8 Implementing the combined regime in Hong Kong 287
10.8.1 The Territory’s weakness 287
10.9 Chapter conclusion 289
11 CONCLUSION 293
11.1 Impact of mobile communication technology on children and young
people 294
11.2 The adequacy of the existing regulatory framework 294
11.3 Convergence of technologies 296
11.4 The lessons learnt 298
11.5 Regulatory paradigms and self regulation 300
11.6 A viable regulatory framework 301
11.7 The problem statement answered 302
11.8 Suggestions for future research 304
SAMENVATTING 307
SUMMARY 313
REFERENCES 319
TABLE OF STATUTES AND CASES 343
APPENDICES 347
A: MOBILE NETWORK OPERATORS INHONGKONG 349
B: ACASE SAMPLE 351
C: CONVERGENCE AT THREE LEVELS AND CONVERGENCE OF SECTORS 353 D: HONGKONG’S WAY FORWARD: TOWARDS A CONVERGING
ENVIRONMENT 357
CURRICULUM VITAE 361
List of abbreviations
3G Third Generation
ABA Australian Broadcasting Authority ACA Australian Communications Authority ACLU American Civil Liberties Union
ACMA Australian Communications and Media Authority ADSL Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line
AOL America On-Line
ARPA Advanced Research Projects Agency ARPU Average Rate Per User
ASP Application Service Provider
AVMSD Audio Video Media Services Directive BA Broadcasting Authority
BBFC British Board of Film Classification BORO Bill of Rights Ordinance
BRTF Better Regulation Task Force BWA Broadband Wireless Access C&ED Customs and Excise Department
CC Creative Commons
CDA Communications Decency Act CDMA Code Division Multiple Access
CEOP Child Exploitation and Online Protection Center CERN European Particle Physics Laboratory
COIAO Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance COPA Child On-line Protection Act
COPPA Children’s On-line Privacy Protection Act COE Council of Europe
CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child
CRTC Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission CSL CSL New World Mobility Limited
CSP Content Service Provider DSL Digital Subscriber Line DVD Digital Video Disc
ECPAT End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography, and Trafficking of Children
EFF Electronic Freedom Frontier FBI Federal Bureau of Investigations FBO Facilities-Based Operator
FCC Federal Communications Commission FCO Film Classification Ordinance
XVI List of abbreviations
FTNS Fixed Telecommunication Network Service
GB GigaBytes
GPS Global Positioning Service
HKISPA Hong Kong Internet Service Provider Association HKSAR Hong Kong Special Administrative Region HSDPA High Speed Downlink Packet Access HTML Hyper-Text Mark-up Language IAB Internet Architecture Board
ICANN Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ICANN Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICH Internet Content Host
ICRS Internet Content Rating System IDA Information Development Authority IETF Internet Engineering Task Force IESG Internet Engineering Steering Group IGF Internet Governance Forum
IIA Internet Industry Association IM Instant Messenger
IMCB Independent Mobile Classification Body
INTERPOL International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children IOSM Inter-Operator Short Message
IOSMS Inter-Operator Short Message Service IPR Intellectual Property Rights
IPTV Internet Protocol Television IRC Internet Relay Chat
ISFE Interactive Software Federation of Europe ISOC Internet Society
ISP Internet Service Providers
ITU International Telecommunication Union ITU International Telecommunications Union IWF Internet Watch Foundation
LBS Location-Based Service LEGCO Legislative Council
M Mature audiences
MA15+ Not suitable for under 15s Mbps Megabits per second
MCMC Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Authority
MHz MegaHertz
MMS Multimedia Messenger Service MNO Mobile Network Operator MP3 MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3 MPEG Moving Pictures Experts Group MSP Mobile Service Provider
MVNO Mobile Virtual Network Operator NCC National Consumer Council NFP Network Facilities Provider NGN New Generation Network
List of abbreviations XVII
NPC National People Congress NSP Network Service Provider
NTT Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation OAT Obscene Appeals Tribunal
OECD Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development OFCA Office of Communications Authority
OFCOM Office of Communication OFL Office of Film and Literature
OFTA Office of Telecommunication Authority PCPO Prevention of Child Pornography Ordinance
P2P Peer-to-Peer
PDPO Personal Data Privacy Ordinance PEGI Pan European Game Information PG Parental Guidance
PICS Platform for Internet Content Selection PNET Public Non Exclusive Telecommunication PSP PlayStation Portable
R18+ Restricted to 18 and over RC Restricted Content
RFID Radio Frequency Identification SBO Service-Based Operator SMS Short Message Service SNS Social Networking Sites SRI Stanford Research Institute
SWAMI Safeguards in a World of Ambient Intelligence TA Telecommunication Authority
TCP/IP Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) TELA Television, Entertainment and Licensing Authority UCL Unified Carrier Licence
UCLA University of California Los Angeles UEMO Unsolicited Electronic Messages Ordinance UK or U.K. United Kingdom
UMTS Universal Mobile Telecommunication System
UNCITRAL United Nations Commission of International Trade Law UNDRP Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund
UNICRI United Nations Interregional Crime Justice Research Institute UNIDIR United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
US or U.S. United States of America VCD Video Compact Disc
VOD Video On Demand
VoIP Voice Over Internet Protocol W3C World Wide Web Consortium
WIPO World Intellectual Property Organisation WLAN Wireless Local Area Network
WSIS World Summit on the Information Society X18+ Films containing sexually explicit content
List of figures
1.1 The relations between RQs and research activities 25 1.2 The relations between Chapters and the RQs/PSs 26 3.1 Government objectives for policies in the communication sector 42 6.1 Wong and Hiew – segmentation of mobile entertainment 124
6.2 Classification categories under COIAO 129
6.3 Classification categories under COIAO (on the left) and FCO (on
the right) 130
6.4 Responsibilities of TELA, the Police, and C&ED 130
6.5 Sample cases decided under the COIAO 135
6.6 A sample of cases decided under the PCPO 141
6.7 Fours levels of classification for determining sentencing under
the PCPO together with aggravating factors 143 7.1 Classification categories for films, computer games and
publications 159
7.2 Broadcasting-centric model 177
7.3 Converged content regulation model 178
7.4 Measuring the efficacy of regulatory approaches 180 8.1 A comparision of the three-layer model by Benkler (left) and
Lessig (right) 219
8.2 Control system enumerated together with their elements (Murray
& Scott, (2002) 231
9.1 Regulatory spectrum 241
9.2 NCC’s self regulation spectrum (adapted version) 246 9.3 The spectrum ranging from command control to pure self
regulation 258
9.4 Example of enforcement pyramid 258
9.5 Example of a pyramid of regulatory strategies 259 10.1 The importance of community participation (Murray & Scott,
2002) 281
10.2 The three main elements of a legal framework 291
Figure A1 Market share of mobile network operators in Hong Kong
(early 2005) 349
Figure A2 Mobile market in Hong Kong (early 2006) 350
Figure C1 Convergence of sectors 355
Figure C2 Convergence at different levels 355
