Free (libre) and open source software (FLOSS) emerged in the 1980s as a radical alternative to proprietary software. Fighting back against what FLOSS enthusiasts viewed as overly restrictive intellectual property protections placed on proprietary software, FLOSS was designed with the intent of granting users the right to study, modify, adapt, or otherwise tinker with the source code of software. As such, FLOSS users were able to collaborate in producing software that could be distributed freely and widely to others, who could, in turn, make changes to the software. As FLOSS projects grew in popularity, the productive process was spread throughout a broad network of distributed users, all of whom could work on the code. The result of this process was the creation of robust, effective, and efficient forms of software that could compete with those offered by large software companies. Increasingly, however, some of those large software companies became involved in the development of FLOSS projects. On its face, this may seem to be a contradiction of interests. Why would a for-profit company invest in the development of software that is made freely available for others to use? This is the contradiction that lies at the heart of this research project. More specifically, this project looks at the dynamics that exist between communities of FLOSS developers and the corporations that are involved in or make use of their projects. Working from a critical political economy perspective, this study complicates theories of the commons and commons-based peer production by illustrating how FLOSS processes and products are being incorporated into broader corporate structures and strategies. The three case studies presented - Red Hat, Microsoft, and Oracle's acquisition of Sun Microsystems - exemplify different elements of this dynamic. Red Hat provides an example of how a company that relies exclusively on free software can be turned into a profitable business. The Microsoft case demonstrates why the company has undergone a transition from vehement opposition to FLOSS toward a more supportive position. Finally, Oracle's acquisition of Sun Microsystems demonstrates how FLOSS communities cope with changing ownership structures and unwanted corporate interference into their projects.

The social and environmental impacts of consumer electronics and information communications technologies (CE/ICTs) reflect dynamics of a globalized and interdependent world. During the early 21st century the global consumption of CE/ICTs expanded greatly while the infrastructure behind CE/ICTs, especially the extraction and disassembly phases, became more integrated. This dissertation examines how messages about the social and environmental impacts of CE/ICTs changed during this period and explores the discursive power of actors involved in environmental justice campaigns surrounding the disposal and disassembly of electronic waste (e-waste). The dissertation reports the results of a mixed methods investigation of twelve years of media coverage of e-waste through quantitative content analysis and qualitative document analysis. The analysis examined almost 800 articles from eleven media outlets between 2002 – 2013 and explored differences between legacy media coverage (e.g. The New York Times, USA Today) and coverage from digital news outlets focused on technology (e.g. Ars Technica, CNET, Gizmodo). When the story of e-waste began to gain traction in media outlets, the haze of commodity fetishism cleared for a brief moment and the social relations of exploitation behind the wonders of technology were included in media narratives. While the media coverage about e-waste initially examined environmental justice issues of pollution and labor exploitation, the coverage evolved into focusing on the technical and business solutions to managing the environmental problems and the growth of a private sector profiting from mineral reclamation through electronics recycling.

近四、五年來台灣電影環境有一些極為特殊的現象。一方面自一九七０年代中期以降，台灣電影工業在生產方面的蕭條，至今已演變到相當嚴重的狀況；另一方面，部份本地電影卻在國際影展上普遍獲得好評，屢獲大獎。凋敝與光鮮之間，有著強烈的對比。不僅如此，國家對電影工業史無前例地高度關注；台灣、香港、中國大陸這「兩岸三地」的電影經濟互動頻繁；還有本地電影業者與錄影帶、有線電視等新傳播科技的分合關係……種種這些現象，在當前交織出一幅特殊且紛亂的台灣電影環境圖像。 　　本研究試圖以各類電影工業資料的整理與分析，來具體描繪出種種存在於當前電影環境的特殊現象，並說明當前電影工業的結構與運作狀況。而後將這整體電影工業狀況置放於更大的政治與經濟脈絡下，探討一九八０年代以來電影工業的發展過程，並主要從國家電影政策與電影市場動態這兩層次的影響，來分析為什麼會演變出目前電影工業的面貌。由此辨明當今台灣電影工業發展的真正問題所在，並藉以提出較為適切的政策制定與產業營運的思考方向。 　　研究指出，台灣電影工業生產量五年來持續迅速下跌，票房收入也極差。市場中充斥美國與香港影片，瓜分掉大筆資源。但少量的本地製片中，又在內容與形式方面有呈現兩極化的現象：一部份為製作粗糙的低俗娛樂電影，一部份為製作較嚴謹的藝術電影。造成這些現象的原因，主要源自於早期國家設定了電影的商業娛樂取向以及依賴外來影片的電影市場供需狀況，在時間推移之中，美國與香港的通俗娛樂電影逐漸成為市場主流，大部分觀眾的電影品味也受到嚴重影響。於是台灣發行部門將資源轉向外來影片之發行，並集中於少數公司壟斷了發行管道，而台產影片在製片資源上的缺乏在娛樂性技術性上則更無法追上外來影片，產量與票房愈來愈少。除了這一趨勢隨著經濟自由化而愈形嚴重之外，八０年代以後架構於貧富差距拉大之上的文化品味分化，少部份文化資源較豐富的人也形成藝術電影市場。於是低成本的台產藝術電影有了基本生存條件，而低成本的娛樂電影也滿足了市場中最底層的縫隙。而不管是哪一類電影，受國外之電影標準的影響都愈來愈大。 　　因此研究建議，國家政策應從限制外片進口、化解發行管道壟斷，以及積極輔導獨立製片公司三方面齊頭並進，方能解決台灣電影生產日趨沒落的危機。而獨立製片公司、創作者，與評論者則應集結起來以較大的力量來制衡主要公司的壟斷，並監督國家進行改革。