■ Television
Singapore set to test HDTV
The country will begin trials of high-definition television this month as part of efforts to boost the city-state's competitiveness through more advanced technology. "HDTV technology presents tremendous opportunity to position Singapore as a leader in the media sector," Christopher Chia, chief executive officer of Singapore's Media Development Authority, told reporters yesterday. "The stage is set for the next stellar jump as we enhance Singapore's position as the next-generation media hub of Asia." StarHub Ltd, Singapore's only cable-television provider, and state-owned broadcaster MediaCorp Pte will participate in the trials, Chia said. Both companies declined to comment on investment figures for HDTV, which offers images that are up to five times clearer and sharper than traditional analog TV.
■ Electronics
Philips wins Chinese deal
Dutch consumer electronics and appliance maker Royal Philips Electronics NV said on Tuesday that Chinese cellphone maker Haier chose its Nexperia cellular system 5128 to create a low-cost handset for mass production in China. The company did not give financial details. "The bulk of new subscriber growth over the next five years will come from developing regions, such as China," said Scott Smyser, principal analyst at market research firm iSuppli Corp, in a statement.
■ Communications
DoCoMo eyes alliance
NTT DoCoMo Inc, the world's second-largest cellphone company, may ally with online search engines this year to encourage users to spend more for Internet services, challenging a tie-up struck between KDDI Corp and Google Inc. "Mobile phones are becoming much closer to personal computers," chief executive Masao Nakamura said during an interview in Tokyo. "We definitely need a search engine." He declined to name prospective companies. Nakamura also said the company may increase spending to keep customers before the introduction of rule changes that will allow users to switch operators without changing their phone number. DoCoMo will decide whether to spend more on promotions and incentives to retailers depending on what its rivals do, he said.
■ M&A
Airline, hotel mull tie-up
Japan's second largest airline, All Nippon Airways, (ANA) said yesterday it was considering a tie-up with the InterContinental Hotels Group. "We are considering, if possible, forming a tie-up with InterContinental group," an ANA spokeswoman said without elaborating. The ANA group, which operates 33 hotels in Japan and two overseas, wants to focus its resources on strategic areas, such as international logistics operations, the Sankei Shimbun reported, citing ANA sources.
■ Banking
Development bank set up
Vietnam has set up a development bank with registered capital of more than US$300 million to help the government orient key investment projects, a bank official said yesterday. The Vietnam Development Bank also aims to boost exports and reduce poverty, said the official, who declined to be named. According to the English-language daily Vietnam News, the bank was set up in Hanoi on Tuesday and is exempted from budgetary obligations.
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Xinyi A13 Department Store last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined at
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)