Study Of The Electronic Agent Legal System

The advent of inexpensive yet powerful computers, together with the rapidly evolving public data communications network infrastructure, has spawned a revolution in the way companies and, increasingly, individual consumers transact business.The ability of sophisticated software programs, so-called electronic agents, to make decisions and fulfill business objectives intelligently and autonomously, without human interaction or intervention furthers this electronic commerce revolution. Businesses and individuals use such electronic agents today in a wide variety of roles; from stock trading, to inventory and supply-chain management, to data filtering and information retrieval. Use of electronic agents promises to further expand in the future, as network connectivity becomes even more ubiquitous and companies seek to reap the cost and market efficiencies that are the hallmark of the electronic commerce revolution.The law governing the use of electronic agents, like the field of electronic agents itself, is in its infancy. Applications of electronic agent technology are fast becoming widespread, covering many aspects of electronic commerce and related areas of information technology. Proposed and current applications of electronic agents include stock and securities trading, language translation, and collaborative filtering.Given the stakes, consumers and businesses need clear legal guidelines concerning a variety of fundamental legal issues. Such...