At Internet Service Provider @Home's customer service clients now can ask their questions to Maud, a virtual employee. At the moment Maud isn't very smart yet: for a question like ' is @home available in Leiden?', I was referred to a different page on the website. In a next step she will directly say: 'yes, it's available in certain parts of Leiden, but not in other parts; what is your zip code?' Brand agents, like I call them, more and more often represent the brand. Now on the PC, later also on the mobile phone and TV. Now in a typed dialogue, later also complete in speech. Earlier or later we won't realize that we are talking to an artificial character any more. This is a small step in that direction.

• in Dutch