The government and the WiMAX Forum will host a technology conference in Taipei next week that is expected to bring NT$140 billion (US$4.3 billion) in revenues for local telecom equipment makers by 2012, a government official said yesterday.
The Portland, Oregon-based WiMAX Forum, which is chaired by Intel Corp's Ron Resnick, has 460 members -- mostly operators, and component and equipment firms.
Some 71 firms from abroad and at home will join the WiMAX Forum Taipei Showcase on Monday and Tuesday at the Taipei International Conventional Center -- including Alcatel-Lucent, Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola Inc -- co-organizer Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI, 工研院) said.
"The conference aims to facilitate technological exchanges between local companies and global firms, thereby bringing more business opportunities to export-oriented Taiwanese firms," said Wang Chang-ying (
The WiMAX Forum plans to set up a WiMAX certification test lab in Taiwan that will help local companies manufacture products compatible to equipment made by global telecom equipment makers, Wang said. The government was a prime mover in getting the lab located here.
"Local firms should primarily benefit from the booming sales of WiMAX customer premises equipment [CPE] in 2009 as well as base stations before the popularization of WiMAX service," Wang said.
On the back of a positive market sentiment, shares of the nation's major telecom equipment makers, including Zyxel Communication Corp (合勤), Gemtek Technology Co (正文) and Accton Technology Corp (智邦), jumped 5.08 percent, 2.22 percent and 6.75 percent to NT$62, NT$73.6 and NT$17.4 respectively yesterday.
The ministry is scheduled to sign a memorandum of understanding with more global firms on Monday to supply technologies, or sourcing WiMAX-related components from Taiwanese makers, Wang said.
She declined to reveal names of companies.
In October 2005, the government signed a similar deal with Intel Corp, followed by Nortel and NEC Corp in May of this year, Wang said.
During next week's conference, local mobile operators who have WiMAX licenses -- including Far EasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信) and Tatung InfoComm Co (大同電信) -- will offer visitors a sample of their technology.
Far EasTone will provide high-speed data transmission using WiMAX technology on shuttle buses, while Tatung will show its distant medical care services for people living in remote areas.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
Meta Platforms Inc offered US$100 million bonuses to OpenAI employees in an unsuccessful bid to poach the ChatGPT maker’s talent and strengthen its own generative artificial intelligence (AI) teams, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has said. Facebook’s parent company — a competitor of OpenAI — also offered “giant” annual salaries exceeding US$100 million to OpenAI staffers, Altman said in an interview on the Uncapped with Jack Altman podcast released on Tuesday. “It is crazy,” Sam Altman told his brother Jack in the interview. “I’m really happy that at least so far none of our best people have decided to take them
RSS