hypa RELEASE
hypa has recently adopted a policy of honesty and openness, which is why we now make available much of the important information in our possession. The information below has been released by hypa to media outlets, so it may already have been reported in your local media.
hypa Press Release: 10 November 1997 at 0900 EST
While everyone knows about the year 2000 "Millennium Timebomb" problem where computers may be prone to confusing the year 2000 with the year 1900, there has not been much debate concerning what experts have called "The OTHER Year 2000 Problem".
This problem has arisen because a giant telecoms company, Global InfoCo, registered the number "2000" as a trademark in 1976. This means that every time a programmer enters the number "2000" into a programme a royalty has to be paid to Global InfoCo.
As a result of the problem, those who are programming computers, the companies the programmers work for and the companies that run the newly modified programmes on their machines all have to negotiate royalty payments to Global InfoCo.
A Global InfoCo spokesperson has been quoted as saying they expect to earn $148billion in the twelve further years before their trademark expires. "We have taken the generous step of exempting charities from 80% of their royalty payments", said the spokesperson.
hypa would like to announce that it is no longer prepared these fees, and urges others to adopt the same policy. Please get in touch with us if you are ready to join our campaign against these unfair charges.