■ Software
Microsoft expands in Ireland
Microsoft Corp announced plans on Thursday to open a new research and development center in Ireland that it said would design parts of the next edition of its Windows operating system, codenamed "Longhorn." The announcement came during 20th anniversary celebrations of Microsoft's 1985 arrival in Dublin. The software giant employs 1,200 people in suburban south Dublin and has made Ireland -- the world's biggest exporter of software, thanks to Microsoft's presence -- one of its main European bases for customer support, production and research. Besides working on components of Longhorn, the center's researchers are expected to develop applications for Windows Media Center and make Microsoft software more adaptable for use in different languages and countries.
■ Airlines
Dragonair to increase seats
Dragon Airlines Ltd plans to increase its seats on flights to China this summer to meet expectations of a sharp rise in passengers, the company says. The carrier -- Hong Kong's second largest -- also plans to start flights to South Korea and Australia and launch a cargo service to the United States in the coming months, chief financial officer Francis Wai said in an interview. Wai said China's robust economy warranted the increase in the carrier's air services. "Mainland China is our core market and will continue to be so," Wai said. Dragonair posted record passenger and cargo volume last year, when it flew 4.5 million passengers, up 49.2 percent from 2003.
■ Entertainment
Warner Music files IPO plan
Warner Music Group Corp, home to Madonna, on Friday revealed plans for an initial public offering, filing with regulators to sell up to US$750 million of common stock. In its Securities and Exchange Commission statement, the company did not estimate how many shares or at what price it planned to offer its stock, but said shares will be sold by both the company and several shareholders. Warner Music, one of the world's largest record companies, plans to list its stock on either the New York Stock Exchange or on the NASDAQ. Proceeds from the deal will be used to repay debt and for general corporate purposes, according to the SEC document, submitted on Friday. New York-based Warner Music was formed about a year ago when a group of investors, led by chairman and chief executive Edgar Bronfman, bought Time Warner Inc's music division for US$2.6 billion in mostly cash.
■ Airlines
Jetsgo grounds all its planes
Discount Canadian airline Jetsgo announced on Friday that all its flights had been canceled while it seeks bankruptcy protection, stranding an estimated 17,000 passengers, many of whom were heading out on their long-awaited spring break. Jetsgo advised customers to make alternative arrangements before heading to the airport since there would be no Jetsgo staff or planes available while the airline seeks bankruptcy-court protection. Travelers who are already away were told their return tickets were no good and to make other arrangements to get back home. The privately held company issued the stunning announcement shortly after midnight on Friday. It is asking Quebec Superior Court to grant it protection from creditors. Jetsgo said that difficult market conditions and competitive pressures led the company to discontinue operations and ground all of its planes.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) is expected to share his views about the artificial intelligence (AI) industry’s prospects during his speech at the company’s 37th anniversary ceremony, as AI servers have become a new growth engine for the equipment manufacturing service provider. Lam’s speech is much anticipated, as Quanta has risen as one of the world’s major AI server suppliers. The company reported a 30 percent year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue to NT$1.41 trillion (US$43.35 billion) last year, thanks to fast-growing demand for servers, especially those with AI capabilities. The company told investors in November last year that
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電) forecast that its wafer shipments this quarter would grow up to 7 percent sequentially and the factory utilization rate would rise to 75 percent, indicating that customers did not alter their ordering behavior due to the US President Donald Trump’s capricious US tariff policies. However, the uncertainty about US tariffs has weighed on the chipmaker’s business visibility for the second half of this year, UMC chief financial officer Liu Chi-tung (劉啟東) said at an online earnings conference yesterday. “Although the escalating trade tensions and global tariff policies have increased uncertainty in the semiconductor industry, we have not
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