Passport Troubles
The European Union has much stricter customer data restrictions than the U.S. Even Microsoft couldn’t skirt those regulations, as reported in EU Business: The US software giant Microsoft has agreed …
Month: January 2003
Slouching Towards Unicode
Unicode is one of the most significant achievements in computing over the past decade. It’s just a shame that so few people know about it. What the heck is Unicode? …
Office Depot en Español
Today, Office Depot launched its Spanish language Web site. It’s just a matter of time before Staples follows suit. I found this interesting tidbit in the press release: According to …
An article in the LA Times describes the phenomenal success of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’ memior (the first of three books): “Vivir Para Contarla” (Living to Tell the Tale). The big …
Multilingual Domain Name Redux
It has been roughly a year since RealNames imploded, bringing down with it a service that had supported the resolution of multilingual domain names. The implosion was a big blow …
China’s Gold Rush
When asked about his company’s plans for 2003, Kirk Pond, the CEO of Fairchild Semiconductor, talked mostly about Asia, specifically China. His company already does 70% of its business in …
Local Markets Change Channels
Is American entertainment a bellweather for other American products around the world? American multinationals must certainly hope not, based on this recent article. It seems that American studios are no …
Have a Mecca Cola and a Smile
When the world loved America, American multinationals could do (almost) no wrong. Nike, Coke, McDonald’s and the rest could sell their goods practically anywhere in the world and make a …