Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大), the nation's second-largest telecom operator, is looking to broadband and other services to increase revenue as a result of a stagnant mobile voice service sector and a trend toward telecom convergence, a company executive said yesterday.
Although its mobile phone business contributed 90 percent of the company's revenues, corporate, broadband and cable TV businesses would become the biggest drivers in the future, president Harvey Chang (
"This year will be a period of strong momentum after several acquisitions last year," Chang said.
Revenue generated from broadband services and cable TV subscriptions would grow by double-digit percentages annually for the next two to three years, the company said.
Taiwan Mobile hopes to improve from fourth to third position in the cable TV industry -- a market of 4.6 million households -- the company said.
Chang said it was an easily attainable goal for Taiwan Mobile to boost cable TV subscriptions from approximately 500,000 users to 1 million.
James Jeng (
"We have approached several parties [about an acquisition], but the price much too high," Jeng said.
A reasonable price would be somewhere between NT$30,000 and NT$35,000 per subscriber, he said.
Meanwhile, industry leader Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信), which is also looking to diversify, hopes to increase Internet TV subscriptions to 1 million by the end of the year by offering discounts on Sony TVs to new subscribers.
Chunghwa Telecom and Taiwan Mobile are also looking to foreign markets for growth by investing in next-generation WiMAX technology, among other sectors.
This year, Taiwan Mobile hopes to increase its fiber-to-the-building users from 800 to 10,000, Jeng said. Cable modem users are expected to increase by 37 percent during the same period, from 62,000 to 85,000, he said.
Taiwan Mobile's net income, including Taiwan Fixed Network Media and Taiwan Fixed Networks Corp (台灣固網), grew nearly 30 percent to NT$1.59 billion last month compared with NT$1.24 billion a year ago.
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,”
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
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
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS