I am an author, trainer & consultant specialising  in Internet governance & telecoms policy. I have a particular interest in  human rights issues, and I have written extensively on the balance between freedom of expression, privacy & copyright.  I am a Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science. 

I have produced high profile research at European level, presented in European Parliament & expert groups, and served as a Council of Europe expert. I have in-depth knowledge of EU policy and institutions - process and procedure. My work addresses legislation, regulatory frameworks, trade agreements and human rights. I have strong qualitative research skills to support public policy advocacy, combined with an entrepreneurial ‘can do’ approach. I am experienced at public speaking, and I especially enjoy chairing round tables.

I have conducted training sessions for UN & EU-funded capacity building projects in Georgia. I served as a Council of Europe expert on joint CoE / EU funded projects in Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and Albania. I was a member of the Council of Europe's Committee of Experts on Cross-border Flow of Internet Traffic and Internet Freedom. I authored an advocacy report for the Center for Democracy and Technology on intermediary liability.

I  have served on a number of projects for Council of Europe,  including in the former Soviet states.  I served as an independent expert on the Council of Europe Committee of Experts on cross-border flow of Internet traffic and Internet freedom.

I am available for training and consultancy projects, as well as for speaking engagements and  conferences.  Please contact me if you have a project or event you would like to discuss.

I am the author of several academic papers and three books examining Internet-governance policy (including copyright) from a critical perspective. I have presented my research at universities and policy conferences in Brussels and around Europe.

My book 'The Closing of the Net' (Polity 2016)  deals with the power politics and lobbying of the Internet corporations. I have written two other books.   A Copyright Masquerade How Corporate  Lobbying Threatens Online Freedoms ( 2013  ZedBooks). The books discusses the politics of  copyright enforcement,  including the UK's Digital Economy Act and spain's Ley Sinde. It updates Drahos and Braithwaite's 'Information Feudalsim' with a discussion of intellectual property politics in the United States, and how it got into trade policy - of interest to those following the ongoing trade talks such as EU-US (TTIP) and the TRans-Pacfic Partnership (TPP).  It  follows this with a discussion of ACTA and the EU political outcome.  My other book The Copyright Enforcement Enigma - Internet politics and the 'Telecoms Package'  was (2011 Palgrave Macmillan).  If you are interested, please  click through the link for more information, including a contents list.  

As an academic researcher, I have a track record in producing  empirical studies of current policy issues. I emphasise the use of primary source material and original thinking, and a sound, rigorous methodology. My work is cited in a range of academic journal papers and books.

I am happy to say that I successfully defended  my PhD thesis - entitled The Political Battle for Online Content in the European Union - on 7 September 2010, with no corrections I researched my PhD at  the University of Westminster  Communications and Media Research Institute (CAMRI), where I was a self-funded student.  I am currently a member of a Brussels working group on Internet policy and 'freedoms'. I have presented aspects of my research in Berlin, Washington. Barcelona  and Brussels, including in  the European Parliament. The details of these presentations are in the pages under 'Presentations'.  I've written two  papers  based on my PhD  research,  published  by the American University,  Washington College of Law  and JIPITEC (see Published Work).

I have a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Australian National University (ANU), and a Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing.  In 2006, I obtained a Masters Degree with Distinction, in Communications Policy, from the University of Westminster.

I have a long porfolio career behind me. Some readers  may remember me from my days as an IT and telecoms  journalist, reporting on matters that are now regarded as 'historical', such as the libe