Danish Crown Prince Launches His Own Website: May 2003

[Julia]

Well, it seems that Fred has his own website. Very cute....he reminds me of Hugh Grant (it's the expression) in the website photo (below).

Fred's Webpage

 

[Alexandria]

Great picture of Frederik! I add another one from his website.

 

[Brenda]

Prince Frederik apparently officially opened a web site on his birthday, May 26. There's videos at the particular url, http://www.hkhkronprinsen.dk/8d0029 if you click on the links below "Samtale". They're videos of him being interviewed in Danish. Also, at http://www.dr.dk/aroyalfamily/person.html a link from a web site mentioned at the bottom of the page, there are some more videos that are in English of him and other royals.

 

[Julia]

From HELLO! online...

27 MAY 2003
Crown Prince Frederik rang in his 35th birthday on Monday by introducing a personal website containing information on everything from his expenses to his schedule. However, anyone expecting news about his longtime girlfriend Mary Donaldson would be disappointed – the royal internet endeavour contains no mention of the Australian estate agent.

Some had speculated that the new website might be used to announce a highly-anticipated engagement between the crown prince and his girlfriend of three years. As to whether the inauguration is linked to potential wedding news, the prince's private secretary Per Thornit insists: "The launch of the home page has nothing to do with that."

What can be found on the Danish language-only website, www.hkhkronprinsen.dk, however, are plenty of striking photos of the popular royal. Also included are his calendar, descriptions of his residences and a review of how much parliament allocates to his household annually.

And why did the 35-year-old prince decide to create a website? "Frederik uses the internet a lot to get information," explained Thornit. "So we thought it would be good if he had his own homepage."

 

[Alexandria]

Does anyone who reads Danish know if there is a specific link for photos of Frederik? I read somewhere that there were lots of photos of Frederik on his website but I couldn't find any beyond the ones that have already been posted.

From Frederik's official website, some more pictures.

 

[Julia]

Hi Alexandria!

Thanks for the photos. Fred looks very dapper!

I will have a look at the site and see what I can find out (my Danish is limited).

 

[Fireweaver]

Ok, I wonder what type of information he checks for!

 

[thissal]

Fireweaver,

He checks here for opinions on his merry Mary.

 

[Fireweaver]

Uh oh.. I think I may want to edit a few posts I've made around the net then!
No sense in having an angry CP!

 

[Alexandria]

www.hello.com

Danish Crown Prince's Website Under Fire for Copycat Claims

6 JUNE 2003
The 35th birthday of the heir to Denmark's throne, Crown Prince Frederik, was marked in style with the introduction of a brand new website featuring everything from just-released photos of the handsome royal to his day-to-day calendar.

Just one week on from the launch of www.hkhkronprinsen.dk, the site's ultra-modern design is to be changed after it was revealed that the webpage is suspiciously similar to the two-year-old site belonging to a Swedish communications firm.

Soon after the royal site's May 26 debut, Swedish firm Made In Sthlm contacted Frederik's private secretary Per Thornit with their copycat concerns.

The palace immediately referred the complaints to the outside company which designed the page.

Although there's no word on whether or not the likenesses between the two internet pages - they both have a geometric block design, coloured bars with symbols, and black and white photos - is simply a coincidence, the creator behind the prince's website has been sacked by his employers.

www.hello.com - And here is Frederik's website. Does it look similar to everyone else?

 

[Julia]

Uh-oh. Someone's in the doghouse in Denmark! While the two websites look quite similar can one say that CP Frederik's site copied the other? It's one thing to have a very similar look (more embarrassing than anything else) and quite another to basically copy something and just change the wording a bit.

Thanks for keeping us up-to-date, Alexandria!

 

[Alexandria]

I agree Julia. The two sites do indeed look alike. But ideas are so interpretive. It's so hard to say or determine that the Danish site is copied from the Swedish site. When you do it in writing, it's called plairism. Is there a word for it in graphic design? I would think it would be flattering for the Swedish designers anyway, espescially since it was for the Crown Prince of Denmark rather than some porn site or something else distasteful like that.

 

[paulette]

I saw this news in hellomagazine's website. I think both two sides are making plans regarding what to do with this case
because maybe the issue will become bigger and there may be a time that it will reach in court. That could happen. Besides I think if the page is copied its not for a bad cause but its CP Frederick and its for public knowledge.

 

[iseestudio]

When I first saw the two websites images above I thought the only thing alike between the two is they both use black and white photos. However, when I visited the two websites, I did find the proportion of the color blocks are similar also. Besides these, I do not see other similarities.

There are so many websites with similar colors, compositions, layouts...; it's really hard to say nowadays which one copies others unless the two sites are completely and EXACTLY the same. There are some real web pirates who download others' sites completely, only change the text and put on the internet as their own website. This is what I called a crime. And I've seen a couple of them.

Think about it, can Barns & Noble.com and Amazon.com sue each other for similar website layout? Or can Yahoo.com sue all the other website for using same layout?

There are so many common layouts which later become templates. I'm sure the Swedish firm Made In Sthlm is not the first site to use the composition and Crown Prince Frederick's website would not be the last one to use the layout either.

In Andy Warhol's portrait series, he didn't take all the pictures of those celebrities. But he did change the colors and use different medias to present. Thus they were his works and new creations. No one can sue him for copy. Even some of the photographers are happy their works being reproduced in such a creative way. That's how things work in art field. A line or a color change makes big differences.

Here are two photos of Hillary Clinton and Princess Diana which I found alike. I wouldn't call it copy but ... inspired maybe.

Back to the topic, only the designer of Crown Prince Frederick's website knows if he gets inspiration from the Swedish website. No matter what the truth is, both sites have already got enough publicity.

 

[Josefine]

here is the two sites front pages

and here is the other one

 

[Alexandria]

I wonder if this is supposed to be the "re-designed" website for Frederik? It looks similar to his original site, although different enough from the one his designers supposedly copied.

Check it out and tell me what you think.

http://www.hkhkronprinsen.dk/

 

[anna]

Yes, you got it this is how the website appeared monday 16. juni 2003 - press release about new facilities there for disabled readers same day.

Now we wait to see the site in french and english - this is supposed to happen any day....

 

[anna]

Crown Prince Frederik's website is now available in ENGLISH !

http://www.hrhthecrownprince.dk/english.php

 

[Josefine]

do you like his webbsite

 

[hrhcp]

at least there is a link to kongehuset.dk

 

[USCtrojan]

Great website indeed.

 

[julial]

Has anyone wanted to be Mary?

Has anyone wished you were Mary? Such an fairly tale ordinary girls could only dream of... then Mary was an very ordinary girl with an tremendous confidence and will.