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General Motors Honored by Smithsonian Institution for Online Business

10 March 1998

General Motors Honored by Smithsonian Institution; Customers Fuel Online Car Shopping

    WASHINGTON, March 10 -- General Motors's GM BuyPower will
become part of the Smithsonian Institution's Permanent Research Collection on
Information Technology Innovation at the National Museum of American History
on Monday morning, April 6th at 9:30 a.m. on the National Mall, when the 1998
Information Technology Innovation Collection is formally presented to the
Institution.
   "General Motors is using information technology to make great strides
toward remarkable social achievement in business," said Dr. David Allison,
Chairman of the National Museum of America History's Division of Information
Technology and Society.
    Nominated by Les Alberthal, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of
EDS, General Motors's work is part of a collection that includes over 442 of
the year's most innovative applications of technology from 40 states and 19
countries.
    At General Motors, a comprehensive automobile purchase web site allows
customers to choose the car and options they want; compare to the competition;
apply for pre-approved credit; check dealer inventory; communicate with the
dealer to receive a single best price and schedule a test drive online,
providing a simplified shopping and buying experience aimed at improving
customer satisfaction.
    Each year, the Computerworld Smithsonian Chairmen's Committee nominates
individuals who use information technology to improve society for inclusion in
the Smithsonian's National IT Innovation Collection.  Founded in 1989, the
Computerworld Smithsonian Program searches for and recognizes individuals who
have demonstrated vision and leadership as they strive to use information
technology in innovative ways across ten categories:  Business and Related
Services; Education and Academia; Environment, Energy and Agriculture;
Finance, Insurance and Real Estate; Government and Non-Profit Organizations;
Manufacturing; Media, Arts and Entertainment; Medicine; Science; and
Transportation.
    Founded in 1846, the Smithsonian Institution is dedicated to the increase
and diffusion of knowledge.  According to Dan Morrow, Executive Director of
the Computerworld Smithsonian Awards Program, "The materials submitted on
behalf of General Motors will enrich the Smithsonian's growing permanent
collection on the Information Age, and help the Institution build an accurate
historic record of the truly outstanding achievements being made in these
remarkable times."
    Case Studies from the 1998 Collection will be made available to the public
June 8th, on the Innovation Network web site at http://innovate.si.edu, where
the entire ten year collection is available to citizens, scholars, and
researchers worldwide.  The Innovation Network web site also offers visitors
an opportunity to record their impressions of the information technology
revolution in the national record.

SOURCE  General Motors