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266 Robert J. Fouser

in both countries. Unlike the United States, where the Internet
had an established place in academic discourse before going com-
mercial, commercial on-line services in Japan and Korea helped
spread the Internet in society before it spread to businesses and ac-
ademic institutions. From the early stages of Internet diffusion,
users have been willing to pay for these on-line services in both
countries, which has affected public perceptions of the Internet as
a tool for business or pleasure, rather than as a tool of information
exchange as it was perceived in the United States in the early
years of diffusion.
Another similarity between Japan and Korea is the perception
of the Internet and CMC in the arts. To artists in both countries, the
Internet is a source of entertainment that lets them have fun with
their work as they reach out to the public. Visual artists in both
countries have embraced the Web through virtual galleries. This ac-
tion allows them to reach a wider audience because the “gallery” or
the “museum” intimidates many people in both countries. The Neo-
Pop Japanese artist Majima, for example, used the Internet to sell
his works that were displayed as a “convenience store” in a Tokyo
gallery (Fouser 1998). This “virtual gallery,” which received consid-
erable media attention, was on the Web during the exhibition. An-
other Japanese artist developed an “art e-mail” software program
entitled PostPet that delivers e-mail in an entertaining way. The
goal of PostPet is clearly to turn e-mail delivery into a virtual per-
formance on the screen (Bijutsu Techo ¯ 1997).
Two films, Haru in Japan and Cho˘psok in Korea, point to simi-
lar perceptions of CMC in the arts. Directed by Morita Yoshimitsu,
Haru is a 1996 film about a chat-room romance. As the chat-room ro-
mance develops, the two try to meet in person, but miss each other.
Instead, they arrange to glimpse each other from a distance, he in a
train, and she in a car by the tracks. Cho ˘psok, or “The Contact” in
English, is a 1997 film about a chat-room romance. As in Haru, the
two lovers try to arrange a meeting, but end up stalking each other
in a coffee shop in downtown Seoul. The failure of the couples in
these films to meet implies a fear of direct contact, or perhaps a pref-
erence for the anonymity and spontaneity of the chat room. One im-
portant difference between the two films, however, is their public
impact. Haru attracted moderate attention in Japan, but was not a
major success. In contrast, Cho ˘psok was one of the most popular Ko-
rean films of all time. Over a million people saw the film on its first
run (Choso ˘n Ilbo 1997).