Sampo to roll out television sets for Internet programs

Sampo Corp (聲寶), one of the nation's leading television makers, yesterday said it planned to debut its first TV set for Internet TV programs in the first quarter of next year, collaborating with partners such as digital content providers.

That is part of the vendor's efforts to build a greater presence in the digital home market by tapping into the integration of consumer electronics with Internet technology.

In addition to its first high-definition TV for Internet programs, Sampo is preparing to launch set-top boxes linking ordinary TVs to the Internet.

"Sampo, Streaming21, Microsoft Corp and CMC Magnetics Corp (中環) have worked closely throughout the product integration and development process to create compelling digital home innovations unlike any other on the market," Sampo chairman Eric Chen (陳盛泉) said in a statement.

Streaming21 provides interactive Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) solutions, while CMC owns a local movie distributor.

"We plan to debut the first digital TV bundling with digital content at home in the first quarter of next year and sell them overseas later," Sampo spokesman Michael Chen (陳柏蒼) said on phone.

Sampo also announced yesterday it had purchased a 3 percent stake -- or 1.5 million shares -- of local touch panel maker Trans-touch Technology Inc (富晶通) from shareholders to secure panel supplies and boost profits. Chen declined to reveal details of the investment.

Sampo posted around NT$528 million (US$16.31 million) in losses for the first nine months of the year from NT$1.1 billion a year earlier.

Trans-touch Technology is a joint venture between CMC Magnetics and Japan's Fujitsu Co Ltd.