For Hyperallergic, Mostafa Heddaya writes on a Delaware law that legalizes the inheritance of online accounts and digital materials, including ebooks.
A new law in Delaware has made digital devices and accounts inheritable, the first such measure in the United States, Ars Technica reported. The bill, signed into effect last week, drew a veto request last month from an industry lobbying group called the State Privacy and Security Coalition, which represents technology giants like Facebook, Google, and Yahoo. That letter, dated July 8, argues that the law might violate the privacy of the deceased and could override existing contractual agreements that stipulate accounts cannot be accessed by anyone other than the original user.