A European Legal Approach to Grid Computing

This paper presents a European legal approach to grid computing. In the absence of specific legislation regulating its legal status, we attempt to classify the different layers of grid computing (grid fabric, grid middleware and grid applications) by applying the relevant legal terminology to the nature (hardwaresoftware) and function (provision of services) of each layer. We suggest that grid services should be holistically considered as information society services for the purposes of applying the relevant regulatory framework.