by Leonard Marks

About the author: Leonard Marks is an entertainment lawyer and a former assistant U.S. attorney general.

Travelers beware! If you are planning to use the Global Information Superhighway (GIS), be prepared for potholes, barriers and detours.

When Vice President Albert Gore announced the Clinton Administration’s plans for this project, his remarks were acclaimed by a world conference in Buenos Aires. The headlines featured the opportunities for world communications, but made no mention of the formidable obstacles that lay ahead.

The vice president’s speech heralded a new age, pointing out that, Telecommunications is an essential component of political, economic, social and cultural development. It fuels the global information society and economy which is rapidly transforming local, national and international life and, despite physical...