© 2002 by Oxford University Press
Access to the Individual: Digital Rights Management Systems and the Intersection of Informational and Decisional Privacy Interests
1 p.m.ganley{at}se.ac.uk
This article examines emerging systems for protecting content under the rubric of Digital Rights Management. The potential for fine grained management of information works carries with it an unparalleled opportunity for distributors to closely monitor the reading (construed broadly) habits of individuals. The chief aim of this article is to expose how the extensive collection of personal information (‘regulated’ by the notion of informational privacy) combined with the possibility of personalised marketing strategies threatens individual choice and intellectual freedom (discussed by reference to conceptions of decisional privacy). Having addressed the problem, this article goes on to examine some of the legal and technological mechanisms currently available to deal with the issue, before concluding that, whilst at present they are inadequate, they contain within them the seeds of a more robust and mutually beneficial solution. It is hoped that by confining this discussion to a specific context, some lessons may emerge that can contribute to the wider debate on Internet privacy.