English Web Sites in France Flamed by Language Police

Gail Russell Chaddock, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

(PARIS) France's language police have more to combat than "le hamburger"
and "le weekend" these days. Now there's "le cyberspace" and the hundreds
of new words a year that it is generating - all in English.

France has waged wars to preserve its national language for centuries, but
a lawsuit this week marks the first time it has taken the battle onto the
Internet.

A win by state-sponsored language groups could set an important
precedent on how far governments can regulate the Internet, as well as
increase the costs of doing business in France.

Some US-based analysts say that cyberspace is no place for a language
war. "The French case shows a remarkable lack of understanding about
what the Internet is all about. English is the lingua franca of the Internet,
and anyone who tries to impede that will only slow their own growth," says
Mark Anderson, president of Strategic News Service, located in Friday
Harbor, Wash., and one of the leading US consulting firms for computers
and telecommunications. Currently, French Web sites account for a mere 2
percent of all Web sites, whereas 85 to 90 percent of all Web sites are in
English.

"There's plenty of room for diversity on the Internet, but you can't legislate
it," he adds.

But for French-language purists, at issue is a matter of simple respect:
Groups that want to advertise to French consumers should do so in French -
even in cyberspace.

The 1994 Toubon law, named after the then-French minister of culture,
requires that all advertising of goods and services in France be in French or
at least include a French translation.

Until this week, the law has been applied mainly to restaurant menus or
labels on products, starting with English-labeled Bambi stuffed toys in the
Disney outlet on the Champs Elysees. But the new lawsuit tests whether
the law also applies to information on the Internet.

"The Toubon law covers all advertising of goods or services in France. There
is no reason why the Internet should escape," says Marie-Helene Dumestre,
who supervises application of the Toubon law for the French Ministry of
Culture.

This week's case targets the French branch of the Atlanta-based Georgia
Institute of Technology, or Georgia Tech Lorraine, a campus in Metz, in
eastern France, with a current enrollment of 60 students. Classes are
conducted in English, and the faculty rotates in from Atlanta. All course
descriptions on its Internet site are in English, which French officials say
violates French law.

"They are clearly addressing French consumers and should do so in French,"
says Ms. Dumestre.

Georgia Tech's Internet address is http://www.georgiatech-metz.fr, but
surfers take note: If Georgia Tech Lorraine loses this case, it may be liable
for penalties of $5,000 each time someone visits the site. A decision in the
case is expected Feb. 24.

"One of our group members just stumbled onto the Georgia Tech site," says
Marceau Dechamps, a spokesman for Defense of the French Language
Association, one of the two groups bringing suit against Georgia Tech
Lorraine. "We're starting with this case, but we are convinced there are
others. We must ... begin to regulate the Internet. There can be no 'outlaw'
space."

Georgia Tech officials say that since most of its faculty are Americans and
all the teaching is in English - a requirement for admission - it makes sense
to have an English-language Web site.

"Our Web site is also linked to the City of Atlanta and the State of Georgia.
Does France want them to convert to French as well?" says Hans Puttgen,
director of Georgia Tech Lorraine.

He warns that any foreign firm doing business in France might be brought
to court for using English on its Web site.

He adds: "We attract students from all over the world to our Metz campus,
where we offer intensive training in French culture, savoir-faire, art de
vivre, as well as French language. These two associations should be
congratulating us instead of pursuing us in court."

In court on Monday, Georgia Tech also noted that the Toubon law provides
exceptions for foreign educational institutions teaching in a foreign
language.

Georgia Tech officials also note that even many French companies conduct
much of their Internet business in English. A French computer company,
Bull, for example, has a mainly English Web site, although information
about its French services are in French. "We consider that most of our
customers who are connected understand English. We do not have the
resources today to translate the whole site into other languages, including
French," says Rufus Miles, who directs Bull's Internet site
(http://www.bull.fr).

Some French-language activists in Quebec, where French-English language
wars have also been high politics, welcomed the move to crack down on
English Web sites in France.

Even if all the students on campus speak English, "the Web site should be
in French. It's a matter of respect for the French language," says Francois
Hubert, a columnist for the Montreal-based monthly Techno, who also
directs a Web site to improve the quality of the French language.

But such activists also say that a major barrier to the development of
French on the Internet has been the high cost of telephone communications
in France, where rates are set by a government monopoly. "In France, you
pay even for local calls. That has slowed things down. When France
Telecom's monopoly ends as expected this year, rates will go down and
Internet access will improve," says Jean-Francois Chetelat, director of the
Librarie Gallimard in Montreal.

OFFICIAL FRENCH TRANSLATIONS OF COMMON INTERNET TERMS

English French

e-mail     courrier electronique

hacker     pirate informatique

personal computer (PC)   microprocesseur

Web master    webmestre

software    logiciel

to surf     surfer

Web surfer    Internaute

World Wide Web   le Web, or W3 (pronounced DOO-bla-vay TRWA)

Source: WorldWide Language Institute at http://www.wwli.com
 

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