Crosscultural dimensions of Internet portals

When new technologies become available and cultures adopt them, the result can be either convergence, cultures becoming more similar as a result, or divergence, when cultures adopt technology in different ways that maintain or even further accentuate their differences. An analysis of fullservice national Web portals from different countries, typically offering a search engine, directories of links on a set of selected topics, news items including weather, sports, entertainment, and stock market results, advertisements and shopping, and free email, shows evidence of both trends. While most national portals closely resemble the basic structure of Yahoo, the original free fullservice portal, there are also differences in appearance and features offered that can be attributed to cultural variations based on Hofstedes framework.