Abstract
Internet censorship is a controversial issue and the introduction of content regulation in Australia has generated a vigorous debate within the government, industry and the online community.
This paper develops a characteristics based model for the analysis of consumer choice in response to three types of government policy. This paper analyses the impact of a policy prohibiting certain consumption activities, a subsidy for certain goods and an education and awareness strategy aimed at reducing information costs faced by consumers.
This model is then applied to Australia's Internet content regulation scheme. It is argued that whilst only the prohibition elements of the policy may reduce consumers utility, subsidies and education campaigns will benefit some classes of Internet users more than others.
Key Words
Content Regulation, Consumer Choice, Derived Demand, Information Policy, Australia.
Proposed Classifications
K.5.2. [Legal Aspects of Computing]:Governmental Issues -- Censorship
K.4.1 [Computers and Society]: Public Policy Issues -- Regulation
Read this Paper
Original MS-Word (97) format file - click here
Acrobat .pdf format - click here . Note - requires Adobe Acrobat for viewing and printing. Due to the detail in some diagrams, some diagrams will not display correctly unless full zoom is used. All diagrams print correctly and therefore reading this version in print form may be more convenient.