Usability Views Article Details  home | timeline | recent | popular | e-reports | userati | about this site A web address for every car? (04 Sep 2003) Another tantalising development can be seen in Japan, where more than 7m drivers now use the government's Vehicle Information and Communication System (VICS). This allows current information on traffic conditions, temporary speed limits and even parking spaces to be zipped to cars fitted with a VICS reader. The system runs over infra-red, radio waves and FM radio bands. Drivers can get information in three formats: plain text, simple graphics and detailed maps. It is not hard to imagine such a system being used to download songs or even movies to cars. Article URL: http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displayStory.cfm?story_id=2019879 Read 37 more articles from Economist sorted by date, popularity, or title. Next Article: Banking on the technology cycle This site is a labour of love built by Chris McEvoy