China Network Systems Co (
"With digital broadcasting systems, a TV is not only a TV, but also a platform to exchange information and interact with people," Nelson Chang (
Through the alliance, Quanta Computer's subsidiary Quanta Network Systems Inc (
Quanta Computer shares fell 0.9 percent to NT$58.50 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange yester-day. The company said yesterday that sales fell 1.5 percent last month from a year ago to NT$25.3 billion (US$756 million).
China Network is not publicly listed.
China Network is pinning its hopes on the new set-top boxes to help boost TV commerce, as it plans to launch various services by the end of the year, Gary Tsai (
The new services include stock trading, banking and shopping, which can be conducted via a TV remote control, Tsai said.
With the rollout of the services, the company expects to extend its coverage from northern Taiwan -- mainly the greater Taipei area, Keelung and Taoyuan -- to the south, and enlarge its subscription base from the current 30,000 households to 200,000 by the end of next year.
The ambition may sound unrealistic, however, given the small number of people who have subscribed to digital TV over the past two years. Two other digital TV providers -- Eastern Multimedia Co (
"We need to try to bring in as many subscribers as possible to entice more content providers," Tsai said. "With service to start in our key market, Taipei City, I believe the target can be reached."
Last year the Taipei City Government capped the prices of set-top boxes at NT$3,500, which was NT$1,500 to NT$2,000 less than cable companies wanted. Companies now lend the boxes for free to subscribers.
The strategy has worked to bring in customers in Taipei City who have been longing to see an advanced digital system replace the analog system for a long time, Tsai said.
However, Chiu Fu-sheng (
"The key is content," Chiu said.
At present, most basic channels on the digital platform have been shifted from the cable system, giving viewers little difference and thus little incentive for them to make the switch, Chiu said.
He said he will consider producing digital content when the subscriber base is large enough to generate economies of scale.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last