Blockchain and the Law

The Rule of Code

Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Law, Science & Technology, Computers, Application Software, Computer Security, Business & Finance, Industries & Professions, Industries
Cover of the book Blockchain and the Law by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi, Harvard University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Primavera De Filippi De Filippi ISBN: 9780674985919
Publisher: Harvard University Press Publication: April 9, 2018
Imprint: Harvard University Press Language: English
Author: Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
ISBN: 9780674985919
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Publication: April 9, 2018
Imprint: Harvard University Press
Language: English

Since Bitcoin appeared in 2009, the digital currency has been hailed as an Internet marvel and decried as the preferred transaction vehicle for all manner of criminals. It has left nearly everyone without a computer science degree confused: Just how do you “mine” money from ones and zeros? The answer lies in a technology called blockchain, which can be used for much more than Bitcoin. A general-purpose tool for creating secure, decentralized, peer-to-peer applications, blockchain technology has been compared to the Internet itself in both form and impact. Some have said this tool may change society as we know it. Blockchains are being used to create autonomous computer programs known as “smart contracts,” to expedite payments, to create financial instruments, to organize the exchange of data and information, and to facilitate interactions between humans and machines. The technology could affect governance itself, by supporting new organizational structures that promote more democratic and participatory decision making. Primavera De Filippi and Aaron Wright acknowledge this potential and urge the law to catch up. That is because disintermediation—a blockchain’s greatest asset—subverts critical regulation. By cutting out middlemen, such as large online operators and multinational corporations, blockchains run the risk of undermining the capacity of governmental authorities to supervise activities in banking, commerce, law, and other vital areas. De Filippi and Wright welcome the new possibilities inherent in blockchains. But as Blockchain and the Law makes clear, the technology cannot be harnessed productively without new rules and new approaches to legal thinking.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Since Bitcoin appeared in 2009, the digital currency has been hailed as an Internet marvel and decried as the preferred transaction vehicle for all manner of criminals. It has left nearly everyone without a computer science degree confused: Just how do you “mine” money from ones and zeros? The answer lies in a technology called blockchain, which can be used for much more than Bitcoin. A general-purpose tool for creating secure, decentralized, peer-to-peer applications, blockchain technology has been compared to the Internet itself in both form and impact. Some have said this tool may change society as we know it. Blockchains are being used to create autonomous computer programs known as “smart contracts,” to expedite payments, to create financial instruments, to organize the exchange of data and information, and to facilitate interactions between humans and machines. The technology could affect governance itself, by supporting new organizational structures that promote more democratic and participatory decision making. Primavera De Filippi and Aaron Wright acknowledge this potential and urge the law to catch up. That is because disintermediation—a blockchain’s greatest asset—subverts critical regulation. By cutting out middlemen, such as large online operators and multinational corporations, blockchains run the risk of undermining the capacity of governmental authorities to supervise activities in banking, commerce, law, and other vital areas. De Filippi and Wright welcome the new possibilities inherent in blockchains. But as Blockchain and the Law makes clear, the technology cannot be harnessed productively without new rules and new approaches to legal thinking.

More books from Harvard University Press

Cover of the book Returns by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Field Notes on Science & Nature by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book What the Best Law Teachers Do by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Terror in the Balkans by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Erased by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Thomas Hardy by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Making the European Monetary Union by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book The Ocean, the Bird, and the Scholar by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book The Tragedy of Religious Freedom by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book The Family of Abraham by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Homer's Turk by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Epistrophies by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Growth and Distribution by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Family Trees by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
Cover of the book Exporting Freedom by Primavera De Filippi De Filippi
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy