the future is coming

Kim Jong-Il and the Dude Go Bowling for Foreign Dollars

As part of a bid for foreign currency, Kim Jong-Il is trying to bolster North Korean software-development capabilities, including video games targeting foreign audiences, like a mobile-phone bowling app starring Jeff Bridges’s character from The Big Lebowski as well as Men in Black spinoff, called Alien Assault. Both games are published by a division of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. Nostek Joint Venture Company, a firm that markets software built in North Korea for foreign clients, offers billing through Hong Kong or Chinese companies, which helps funds circumvent sanctions. Better-trained programmers will help to bolster North Korea’s economy — and possibly its cyber-warfare capabilities. South Korea claims that North Korea’s postal ministry was responsible for hacking dozens of websites in South Korea and the U.S. last July and that it received intel that North Korea may plan another attack this year. The Dude does not abide.

Kim Jong Il Bowls for Murdoch Dollars With Korea Video Games [Bloomberg]

Kim Jong-Il and the Dude Go Bowling for Foreign Dollars