■ Electronics
Philips to boost Asia sales
Electronics giant Philips is aiming for double-digit growth rates in Asia by increasingly tailoring products to suit the nuances of regional consumers, Andreas Wente, Philips' Asia-Pacific president and chief executive officer, said in a published report yesterday. The Netherlands-based firm is focusing on the booming markets of China and India plus emerging markets such as Vietnam and Indonesia, Wente said. "As the Asia-Pacific becomes more and more important for Philips, our ambitions are also growing," Singapore's Business Times quoted Wente as saying. Regional revenue amounted to S$15.9 billion (US$10.1 billion) last year, a 5 percent hike from 2004. The figure represents 25 percent of Philips' worldwide turnover. Wente is aiming for 33 percent by 2008.
■ Telecoms
NEC seeks handset alliance
NEC Corp, Japan's third-biggest mobile phone maker, said it was in final negotiations with larger rival Matsushita Electric Industrial Co on a handset alliance. The company is also in talks with Texas Instruments Inc. The Matsushita tie-up may include developing handsets and buying components together, NEC president Kaoru Yano said at a news conference yesterday in Tokyo. NEC is in talks with Texas Instruments, the world's largest maker of chips that run mobile phones, to set up a partnership, Yano said.
■ Aviation
Passenger numbers rising
Asia-Pacific airlines flew 10.9 million passengers last month, up 6.7 percent from the previous year, the Kuala Lumpur-based Association of Asia Pacific Airlines said yesterday. In the January to last month period, passenger traffic increased 5.2 percent on the year to 43.33 million, the association said. Air cargo was up 5.2 percent last month to 4.47 million tonnes and increased 5.6 percent to 17.1 million tonnes in the four months period. Despite the growth in passenger traffic, high oil prices continue to pose a threat to airlines, the association said.
■ Entertainment
Comics offered over phone
Walt Disney Co and Vodafone KK, Softbank Corp's wireless unit, will offer a service for mobile-phone users to read comics on their handsets in Japan. Disney and Vodafone KK, the Tokyo-based unit of Vodafone Group Plc bought by Softbank, will provide "Disney Mobile Comics," a digital service offered over the Internet by Vodafone, according to a joint press release issued yesterday. Ten titles featuring characters such as Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Chicken Little and the Lion King will be available as of Thursday, the statement said.
■ Internet
US price war boosts speed
Middle- and working-class Americans signed up for high-speed Internet access in record numbers in the past year, apparently lured by a price war among phone companies. Broadband adoption increased 59 percent from March last year to this past March among US households with incomes between US$30,000 and US$50,000, according to a survey released yesterday by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. It increased 40 percent in households making less than US$30,000 a year. Among blacks, it increased 121 percent, according to the study. Overall, 42 percent of adult Americans have broadband compared to 30 percent a year ago.
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
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
BULLY TACTICS: Beijing has continued its incursions into Taiwan’s airspace even as Xi Jinping talked about Taiwan being part of the Chinese family and nation China should stop its coercion of Taiwan and respect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan about sovereignty if its expression of goodwill is genuine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. Ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) made the comment in response to media queries about a meeting between former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) the previous day. Ma voiced support for the so-called “1992 consensus,” while Xi said that although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have “different systems,” this does not change the fact that they are “part of the same country,” and that “external
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