Ray Van Eng (08/20/96)
| As more and more people are racing to the Internet to
bridge distance and bring people together, some of us are already feeling
a little too close for comfort.
First, we like to present the International squabble of the week award to the French who have recently accused both the US government and private intelligence agencies of using the Internet to launch smear campaigns against major French companies such as the AirBus consortium, Alcatel and others. Based on the belief that computers at some French companies have been broken into, a French defense official asserted that "The information technology resources of some of the private intelligence agencies surpasses those of our secret services," This seems to suggest the involvement of the US National Security Agency. On another front, while some French fashion industry insiders have banned photo agencies from releasing photos of new designs on the Internet, big name fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent and Torrente are going ahead to display their new collections on the Internet as their models were showcasing their creations on the catwalk. As a spokesperson for Torrente puts it, "If someone wants to copy from us, they will do it anyway." On the other side of the Atlantic, one US company is eager in displaying their merchandise to buyers across the Pacific. Designers Direct Mall, have opened up an electronic mall, the Designers Direct Boutique catering exclusively to the Japanese market. Visitors to the e-mall will be greeted by Tracy, a bi-lingual store assistance who will be available at any time to answer shoppers enquires in both English or Japanese. So what does the store has on for sale? What could be more to American fashion than jeans? From makers such as Calvin Clein, Guess, Levi's, of course. Not only jeans are sale on the Internet, babies are too. Well, sort of. The legal department of Rio de Janero is making available photos and bios of orphans and children put up for adoptions on the Internet for viewing by potential future parents living in foreign soils. The Brazilian officials believe that such an approach would help curb the activities of baby traffickers who charges finder fees for their services. While Brazil is trying to ship people out of the country, Bosnia is trying to bring people in--to vote in the upcoming September election. It is believed that there are almost one million qualified Bosnian voters who are living in other countries as refugees. The organization responsible for overseeing the Bosnian election is turning to the Internet to try to bring these absentee votes in. Finally, a sign of the times. In the sixties, we have the Wooodstock. Well, in the nineties, we have the Webstock, a project organized by -- who else -- Yahoo! and Do Something. Webstock '96, a four day event will be held on Nov. 1-4, 1996. One of the major theme of the festival is to encourage young people (the MTV generation) to get involved with political and social issues and be active on a local level. Yahoo, one of the most popular search engines on the Internet today serving an average of 9 million pages a day is serious about launching a series of web "communities" starting with the first one featuring the home tuff of San Francisco. Do Something is a non-profit organization aimed at helping young people making a positive impact on society and be a leader in their communities. Supermodel Cindy Crawford, the two Shues -- Andrew "Melrose Place" Shue, Elizabeth "Oscar-nominee" Shue, and other celebrities of the sports and music industry have already sign on as spokespeople and will make guest appearances. Further information can be reached at : http://www.webstock96.com. |
