Tech firms rally for relief efforts

In the face of the attacks in the US this week it has been right to think about the human cost first, and everything else a distant second.

A natural response was to think, how could the worlds of business and technology mean much at such a time?

In fact, we should have been asking, how can the worlds of business and technology help at such a time?

We haven't had to wait long to find out goodwill and strength from individuals and organisations the world over is now carried over in the actions of companies covered on these pages, week in, week out, for much less important reasons.

So far tech giants such as Cisco, GE and Microsoft have pledged millions to help relief efforts.

Web companies such as Google and Yahoo! - in the knowledge that many sites such as www.cnn.com and news.bbc.co.uk have experienced problems - have devoted pages and server resources to making vital news and information available.

Other tech and internet players will follow.

And today it's becoming clear that a charitable collection on Amazon's sites is providing a straightforward way for anyone to contribute to a Red Cross disaster relief fund.

Any Amazon site can be used, including the www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de and www.amazon.fr addresses. Donations have topped the $2m mark and are rising rapidly.

This column normally looks at a big ebusiness-related news story of the day, a wide variety being covered every week, every month. Right now it is difficult to think of much else apart from the horrendous events in New York city, Washington DC and western Pennsylvania.

We cannot imagine that changing any time soon, and our thoughts remain with the victims, their families and all who knew them.

You can make a donation today at:
http://www.amazon.com
http://www.amazon.co.uk
http://www.amazon.de
http://www.amazon.fr