Saudi Public Relations Co.

First Arabic-Language Internet Courses

SPRC held a series of Arabic-language courses on the Internet during June and July '96. They were the first to be held in Saudi Arabia, which does not yet have an official Internet access provider. It is believed that some 70 companies are currently vying for the license. They will have to prove their ability to be able to block out offensive information, particularly sites that offend religious sensitivities.

Questions regarding the provision of on-line chat, newsgroup postings, etc. within the Kingdom have not been answered, though the government is keen to see the Internet go ahead, approving the use of VSAT in January this year. Many sites, including some in the Middle East ,will by necessity face the scrutiny of whomever is appointed the official access provider.

When the current TEP6 project of AT&T is finished - perhaps at the end of 1997 - Saudi Arabia will have one of the best telecommunications infrastructures in the region. However, the details of Internet provision are largely speculative, as a national Internet strategy is still in the planning stages.

Earlier this year, SPRC also launched the first English-language course in the Kingdom on the Internet, given by well-known Internet trainer and consultant John Elliott.

SPRC was the first to raise the subject of the Internet in the local press and for six months has been trying to instil a sense of the value of the Net throughout Saudi Arabia. Islamic publications were particularly targeted in an attempt to emphasize the positive aspects of the Net. Religious leaders have reacted well, and sites such as the International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) and the Muslim World League will go up on arab.net in the next few months.

A major Islamic site, set to be one of the largest sites in the world, is being planned and backed by local contributions. SPRC and the UK-based HomePage Ltd are at present in the negotiating stages.

Saudi Domain Name Theft Rouses Storm

Saudi CEOs were furious that their company names could not be protected against what the papers called US Internet Imperialism. SPRC was consulted by many of the companies concerned on how they could take alternative registrations or what legal procedures they could follow to get their name back. Several of the larger companies are reputedly joining together to take legal action.

"The fault lies not with the InterNic, whose task is vast enough," wrote CEO of SPRC Khaled Al Maeena. "The fault lies with a US company who used their customer database to take advantage of the lack of Internet awareness in Saudi Arabia."

It is expected that a nationwide boycott against InfoCom USA will be called in the coming month, according to official sources.

For Saudi Arabia, sensitive to the presence of the Internet, this action has undone much of the positive publicity that many organizations have been engendering to make the Internet respectable in the Kingdom.

If you feel strongly that this is not fair play, please write to InfoCom USA. It will help us in our discussions with the authorities.

PO Box 53108 Riyadh 11583 Saudi Arabia Tel: +966 1 441 0101 Fax: +966 1 441 0168 Telex: 40795 SRM GROUP SJ

PO Box 17507 Jeddah 21494 Saudi Arabia Tel: +966 1 643 3855 or +966 2 642 0647 Fax: +966 2 642 9809