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Internet & IT
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2000-04-20 17:15:00-04
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E-business and content important to Asia
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Internet usage rising faster in Asia, most executives still 'fear ' Internet, importance of Asian content looms
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As Asian Internet usage accelerates, Asian executives believe it will have an impact on their business, however, only about 30% of them feel they are good users of the Internet, according to a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers survey. These developments raise the importance of Asian content on the Web. Research by Prudential-Bache International found that 80% of Internet content resides primarily in Europe and the United States. This situation creates a strong demand for Asian content. 'Companies that own and are developing Asian content have become much sought after and stock market action is already reflecting some of this sentiment,' Sanjeet Devgan,
head researcher at Prudential-Bache said. Among the examples he cited were several Asian newspapers that had moved onto the Internet using their information libraries as a content base. Devgan also forecast a reduction in the number of Asian portals to the Internet. He distinguished between megaportals, which have a lot of content to offer surfers, and horizontal portals, seeking to cater to every topic cannot be sustained because they lack the critical size to attract traffic and advertising. He cited the portal tom.com as a site that would become a top China content portal, although many have criticized it for lack of content at the present time.
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