The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday approved the monthly subscription rates for Chunghwa Telecom’s (CHT) soon-to-be launched 1G/600M and 500M/250M broadband service, but added that installation of the new service might be limited by certain restrictions.
CHT’s introduction of 1G high-speed fiber Internet access is widely perceived as a strategic move to solidify its dominant status in the broadband service market due to competition from cable television service providers.
Commission spokesman Yu Hsiao-cheng (虞孝成) said that CHT’s 1G/600M service — with a download speed of 1 gigabits per second and upload speed of 600 megabits per second — is to cost NT$3,599 per month, while the 500M/250M service is to cost NT$2,399.
“The NCC is glad to see that the carrier has advanced to offering this type of high-speed Internet service,” Yu said. “Apart from increasing demand from Internet users to quickly download films, people who work from home or animation artists also need access to high-speed broadband services.”
The availability of 1G high-speed broadband services could facilitate the development of 4K television in the nation, Yu said, adding that Japan is set to launch 4K television next year.
However, CHT has made it clear that it can only provide the new service under certain conditions, Yu said.
People living in a building that already has a CHT-installed fiber Internet network would have no problem switching to the new service, Yu said.
People living in a building equipped with its own fiber Internet network can subscribe to CHT’s service as long as the carrier is allowed to enter the building and set up its service using the existing network, Yu said.
For communities that do not have a fiber Internet network, CHT can install the service if the community’s management board allows the carrier to set up the network using the common duct in the community, he said.
CHT currently offers 100M and 300M services. It now has more than 1 million subscribers to its 100M service.
As of June this year, CHT has about 4.52 million broadband service clients, while cable TV broadband service providers have about 1.25 million subscribers.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost