■Electronics
Game Boy gets versatile
Nintendo's popular game console "Game Boy Advance" can be turned into a videophone by inserting a digital cassette, allowing game users to enjoy real-time chat services, a company official said yesterday. Japanese chip-maker Digital Act has developed the cassette called "Campho Advance" (camera-phone) that comes with a built-in small camera, an earphone and microphone for just ?13,000 (US$110). "With our cassette, ordinary people can enjoy videophones," said Kazuhisa Saito, president of Digital Act. The company has already won licensing permission from Nintendo and will sell the product in Japan in December.
■ Computers
HP focuses on Asia
Computer and printing giant Hewlett-Packard plans on spending US$100 million in the Asia-Pacific region over the next 12 months, a senior official said in a published report on Friday. Michael Hoffmann, senior vice-president of HP's imaging and printing group in the area, also told The Business Times the company is aiming to double its Asia-Pacific consumer base over the next three years from over 8 million people currently. HP in mid-August unveiled 158 new products in printing, imaging, personal computer and digital technology. Of these new products, 89 will be released in Asia, company executives said. The Asia-Pacific region, excluding Japan, contributed around 11 percent or US$2 billion of HP's global revenues in its third quarter, which ended July 31, up 8 percent from the same period a year ago.
■ Marketing
Tweens like Coke, not rum
McDonald's and Coca-Cola are rated the coolest brand names by Hong Kong "tweens," young people aged 8 to 14, according to a survey published yesterday. Smoking and drinking alcohol were chosen by the young people as the uncoolest habits, followed by dating and family gatherings. Boy tweens said the coolest pastime was playing online games while girl tweens said they liked listening to top Canto-pop band Twins, according to the survey by the market research firm Bigger Picture. The youngsters rated protecting the environment a cool objective but said it was uncool to volunteer to help with projects like beach clean-ups. Tweens have been identified as a crucial new consumer market as children develop teenage tastes and make sophisticated choices based on their pastimes.
■ Tourism
Hotel expands in China
Intercontinental Hotels Group, the world's second largest hotel operator, plans to increase its presence in China two-fold over the next three years, the Shanghai Daily reported yesterday. The newspaper quoted David Travers, general manager of the Intercontinental Pudong Shanghai, as saying that the company wants to expand its portfolio in China in the next three years to 80 hotels from the current 41. Intercontin-ental owns several brands including Intercontinental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn. He said the company will open two new Intercon-tinental hotels in Shanghai in the next two years and also open its first Holiday Inn in Hohhot, the capital city of Inner Mongolia.
Agencies
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft