While the motto for Italy’s 30th annual national computer show, SMAU, was An air of recovery, the air that circulated was less of recovery than of the hope of a recovery. Although the show management said the number of visitors was up 15,000 from last year’s show, the halls appeared less crowded and the aisles somewhat roomier for fewer exhibitors. The keynote session set the tone, with Giampio Bracchi, the vice chancellor of Milan Polytechnic, noting the decline since 1990 in overall computer market growth and in increases in government computer spending. The economic development of an industrial country depends on the capacity to produce and make use of new technology. In order to come out of the crisis it is necessary to renew the whole of the public administration and the industrial systems of small and medium-sized business concerns, Bracchi said. Up until now the Italian productive structure has limited itself to simply updating basic automation without making the leap in quality necessary to make possible a growth in competitiveness, he added.

Venture capital

Luigi Abate, president of Confindustria, went one step further, saying that one of the most important criterion for restarting the Italian industry is to stimulate the availability of venture capital, which at present is virtually non-existent. The government must take a decision to accelerate in this direction. Confindustria has asked President Ciampi for a collaborative inspection of the situation because there is just too much talk about it, he declared. Improving the availability of venture capital in Italy would serve to expand the computer market by increasing the number of players in it and by enabling companies to further modernise their systems, he said. Despite a slowdown in attendance, the show, which ended on Monday last week, featured some new exhibition areas targeted at specific industries and technologies, such as Smart Hospital, Digit-Color Copy and Printer Universe. These areas joined existing specialised exhibits for public administration, CAD/CAM, New Media (focusing on multimedia systems), Publishow (computer-based publishing) and Softland, which focuses on advanced technologies for software development. The central piazza of the show grounds, which has in the past been a showcase for demonstrating applications from various sectors, was called Network City and dedicated to all types of networking, from public networks to Personal Digital Assistants. One of the show’s most innovative ideas was introduced in the new Networking exhibitor hall by Brescia-based local area network specialist Siosistemi Srl, S&S International Ltd, of Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, and the Italian state television company RAI. The three announced the launch on the Italian market of Security Kit for combatting personal computer viruses, which provides updates of S&S’s anti-virus Dr Solomon’s Toolkit, via a personal computer board connected to a television aerial and RAI’s Telesoftware electronic software distribution service. The project is a the first time in the world that its software, which is available in eight different languages, is to be distributed via television, says S&S international marketing director Pat Bitton. Making a case for the importance of the product, Bitton said when the company began production in 1990, there were 50 known viruses in circulation, 500 in 1991, and 2,000 last year.

By Marsha Johnston

There are now more than 3,000 and it’s growing every day, she said, adding that S&S employs five full-time anti-virus researchers and is part of the European Institute for Computer Anti-Virus Research, based at the University of Hamburg. We hope this agreement with RAI will help us reach millions more people, she said. Siosistemi managing director Gigi Tagliapietra says his company has already installed 1,000 of the personal computer-to-aerial boards in Italian companies. Security Kit, he says, will cost users less for upgrades than the traditional method of mailing floppy disks. For its part, RAI is trying to keep up with new

technologies in the market, said Mino Cappuccini, sales and marketing director. This is not a panacea for every problem, but it’s a measure of protection. In response to a question about transmission problems on the RAI network, Cappuccini said, as far as RAI is concerned, we have resolved the transmission problems. On the synchronous network, there aren’t any more disengagements, thanks to new installations in Rome. But we will certainly continue our research and checks on high-frequency transmissions. Cappuccini added that the RAI signal for receiving the anti-virus software can be received in other European countries, but that RAI can’t guarantee the signal outside of Italy. In another pavilion, SMAU and the Business Software Alliance conducted an I Love Original Software campaign, complete with buttons and stickers. In light of Italy’s new software copyright protection law, the booth which drew visitors non-stop, said Alliance representative Enzo Mazza. In one hour, we saw 600 brochures containing the text of the new law disappear from the stand, he said. The law, which took effect on January 15, had the effect of tripling and quadrupling Microsoft SpA’s sales forecasts between April and August, said Maurizio Bedina, OEM sales director. It has slowed down somewhat, though. In September, it probably won’t even be double our forecast, he said. Furthermore, he said, considering that Italy supposedly has one original version of software for every eight copies, the fact that we succeeded only in quadrupling our sales means we didn’t even tickle the installed base. Those companies that have regulated everything with regard to the software they use are those who were already disposed to paying up, Bedina said. Autodesk SpA has also seen a sales benefit from the new law since March or April, but it has not yet reached its full potential, said sales manager Roberto Prosperi. We need a national level of co-ordination for the enforcement of the law. So far, there have been actions in various regions, first in the north and which have now moved south, said Prosperi. He adds that Autodesk counts an official installed base of approximately 25,000 in Italy, but which is probably missing 35,000 more people who use AutoCAD software. SMAU also retained certain highlights from previous years, including the 26th SMAU Industrial Design Award and the presentation of the European Information Technology Observatory, which is compiled by the the Cebit in Hannover and Simo in Madrid computer shows, and by Eurobit, the European Association of Manufacturers of Business Machines and Information Technology Industry, with the support of International Data Corp. and the Directorate General XIII of the European Community.

UK only bright spot

The SMAU Industrial Design Award this year went to: Apple Computer Inc’s Audiovision 14 multimedia monitor and scripting language AppleScript; Tiptel AG’s Lettera-V answering machine; Logitech Inc’s digital camera; Microsoft’s Access relational database; Ing C Olivetti & Co SpA’s Multimedia Kiosk advanced research system; Sony Corp’s CM-R111 cellular telephone and Specialix Ltd’s Modular Terminal Server. The European Information Technology Observatory says Europe should post a meagre 1.6% overall growth rate this year, while projecting a 4.2% growth rate in 1994. Geographically speaking, the UK was the only bright spot this year, with a 2.4% overall growth rate projected. Germany follows with a 2.0% increase projection, while France, Italy and Spain trail with forecasts of 0.6%, 0.5% and 0.2%, respectively. The Observatory expects hardware revenues to decline 3.1% in Europe this year and to be flat next year, with software maintaining a respectable rate of 8.2% in 1993 and growing 8.5% in 1994. Services, says the report, should grow 7% this year, driven largely by the diffusion of business process re-engineering practices.