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thelostone
01-10-2010, 06:04 PM
Italy's tourism minister, Michela Brambilla, has instructed the official state lawyer to seek the removal from sale of a "defamatory" iPhone application and to take legal action against the app's maker.
The "What Country" application, produced by Apalon, a division of MoveYourWeb, provides immediately recognisable national stereotypes to accompany users' tourist photos in a photographic album. The application, which works with iPhones, the iPod Touch and iPads, is available from the Apple App Store.
The app associates Italy with pizzas, scooters and the Mafia, and it is the latter connection that has enraged many Italians.

"It's an offensive and unacceptable representation, what's more, accompanied by an explanatory text that, if possible, makes things even worse," Brambilla said in a statement announcing her call for legal action to protect Italy's international image.
The incriminated text reads in part: "The Mafia in Italy is large. No surprise. It's known as Cosa Nostra... The Mafia in Italy constitutes a formidable economic power, which accounts for 10 percent of GDP (Gross Domestic Product)."
Italy is a beacon for the world, because of its history, culture and style, Brambilla insisted. "As a citizen and as a minister, I cannot allow our country to be discredited by using a criminal organisation as our testimonial," she said.
Apalon Vice President Peter Melnikov said that the app is not meant to be a straight travel guide.

"The app is based on interactive map featuring funny stereotypes about particular countries," Melnikov said in an e-mail response to a query. "We are following comments on Italian sites and see that lots of people understand that those stereotypes in question associated with Italy were not invented by us. In the end of the day we hope users will understand satire and respect freedom of speech."

billyboy1963
01-10-2010, 09:33 PM
no sense of humour those Italians

Diablo13
02-10-2010, 12:56 AM
Typical bloody minister, sticking her head in the sand and pretending the Mafia doesn't exist!

It's a good job the writer of the app was so generous to them, many people would have portrayed Italians as having yellow backs and running away from a fight!

The above comment was not meant to annoy any Italian members, it is simply a statement of a preconceived stereotype.