■ Music Piracy
IFPI to sue in Asia, Europe
The international record industry expanded its fight against music piracy yesterday, announcing that it will file hundreds more lawsuits across Europe and Asia against individuals and groups it accuses of illegally sharing music through the Internet. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) said its affiliates are filing 963 new cases and are also adding five new countries to the list of litigation. In the new wave of lawsuits, Japan becomes the first Asian country to launch legal action against music piracy. It is also the first time such action has been taken in the Netherlands, Iceland, Finland and Ireland. Kazaa, which used to be the largest and most popular file-sharing service, has seen its users drop by approximately 45 percent -- from 4.2 million to 2.3 million concurrent users -- since the start of the warning and litigation campaign, the IFPI said.
■ Airlines
State aid row heats up
The future Airbus A350 aircraft, designed to rival Boeing's 787 Dreamliner, could be the first victim of a lengthy dispute between the EU and the US over state aid to the aeronautics sector. Brussels and Washington failed to meet their self-imposed deadline Monday to achieve a negotiated agreement on subsidies to Boeing and Airbus. The US has bitterly opposed European plans to subsidize the A350 and has threatened to seek arbitration by the WTO if the EU allows aid to the project before the end of bilateral negotiations. The situation has stymied the European aircraft maker, which intended to ask its four participating countries, Britain, France, Germany and Spain, for aid to finance the A350. The project's cost is estimated at 4 billion euros (US$5.19 billion).
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began talks with high-ranking Chinese officials in Switzerland yesterday aiming to de-escalate a dispute that threatens to cut off trade between the world’s two biggest economies and damage the global economy. The US delegation has begun meetings in Geneva with a Chinese delegation led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), Xinhua News Agency said. Diplomats from both sides also confirmed that the talks have begun, but spoke anonymously and the exact location of the talks was not made public. Prospects for a major breakthrough appear dim, but there is
The number of births in Taiwan fell to an all-time monthly low last month, while the population declined for the 16th consecutive month, Ministry of the Interior data released on Friday showed. The number of newborns totaled 8,684, which is 704 births fewer than in March and the lowest monthly figure on record, the ministry said. That is equivalent to roughly one baby born every five minutes and an annual crude birthrate of 4.52 per 1,000 people, the ministry added. Meanwhile, 17,205 deaths were recorded, resulting in a natural population decrease of 8,521, the data showed. More people are also leaving Taiwan, with net
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