Chunghwa Telecom Co (
"By the middle of this month, Chunghwa will begin intensive promotional activities for color-screen handsets along with big discounts," Shih Mu-piao (
The company plans to spend NT$4 billion on the project this year, he said.
MMS is an advanced data transmission service that allows cellphone users to send text messages, audio files or color photos and graphics. To access MMS, both the message sender and receiver must have color-screen handsets.
The average monthly phone bill for an MMS user is about NT$200 higher than for conventional mobile-phones services, Shih said.
In an effort to attract new mobile-phone users as well as to retain previous customers, phone companies often bundle phone services with bargains on handsets.
For instance, one can receive around a NT$2,000 discount on a new handset as long as a two-year service contract with the operator is signed.
All operators in Taiwan have been offering such discounts for years, but now Chunghwa will offer an even bigger discount, Shih said.
Local Chinese-language media speculate that Chunghwa plans to double its discounts or offers up to an NT$5,000 discount on each color-screen handset.
The proposed price cuts may be as follows:
-- Nokia 7650, currently sold for NT$10,800, may be lowered to NT$8, 000.
-- Panasonic GD 88 currently sold for NT$20,000, may be lowered to somewhere between NT$17,000 and NT$15,000.
The reports speculated that the price changes will be effective on March 15.
Shih refused to confirm or deny the reports, only saying that the company is in talks with several handset makers such as Nokia Oyj and Matsushita Electric Corp (Panasonic).
"If we receive more support from handset makers, the discount can be further increased," Shih said.
Bargain prices are helpful in stimulating the development of the domestic telecommunications industry.
"Price is always a significant factor for influencing consumer acceptance of new products and services," said Lin Yu-feng (林育烽), a telecoms analyst at the government-funded Market Intelligence Center.
Chunghwa's discounts may stimulate demand and boost the color-screen handset penetration rate in Taiwan, Lin said.
Another factor hindering MMS compatibility between operators may soon be eliminated.
Problems with MMS are two-fold. First, handset makers have not created a standard for MMS exchange, resulting in blurry photos when, for example, transmitting from a Nokia phone to a Sony Ericsson handset.
Second, wireless-service providers also have no MMS communication standard, meaning subscribers with different services, such as Taiwan Cellular Corp (
This lack of inter-connectivity has forced industry players to work together on the problem.
"Several operators are already conducting tests on MMS inter-connectivity, and we hope that a solution can be implemented in April," Shih said.
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