Taiwan Mobile has been fined NT$300,000 (US$9,136) as a default surcharge for failing to dispose of the excess bandwidth in frequency bands below 1 gigahertz (GHz) before the deadline designated by the National Communications Commission (NCC), as well as an additional NT$3 million fine for contravening the Telecommunications Act.
Taiwan Mobile has since returned the frequency as ordered.
The commission first issued the ruling on the default charge on July 10 after listening to a statement by Taiwan Mobile chief technology officer C.H. Jih (揭朝華).
Photo: Ting Yi, Taipei Times
The nation’s second-largest telecom was told to rectify the situation within three days after it received the official ruling, or it would face a fine of NT$3 million for failing to follow its business plan.
As the telecom did not rectify the situation as ordered, it was fined NT$3 million by the commission on July 17.
The nation’s three large telecoms are permitted to have no more than 50 megahertz (MHz) in frequency bands below 1GHz, which can produce radio waves that have higher penetration and diffraction capabilities, and enable telecoms to broaden the service coverage of 5G systems.
Taiwan Mobile obtained 60MHz in highly sought-after frequency bands following its merger with Taiwan Star Telecom, which the commission approved last year on the condition that by June 30, Taiwan Mobile must return the excess bandwidth of 10MHz to the government, or sell or transfer it to other telecoms.
In his statement, Jih said the company is still using the excess bandwidth to serve customers, but that it is scheduled to consolidate the base stations of Taiwan Mobile and Taiwan Star by the end of November and return the excess bandwidth to the Ministry of Digital Affairs by the end of December.
Taiwan Mobile said in a separate statement that it has been working ahead of its schedule since Dec. 1 last year.
“However, the time that we had to consolidate the network was too short, and the court has yet to rule over the administrative lawsuit that we filed challenging the conditions of the merger,” the company said. “To ensure the quality of services offered to users and protect shareholders’ interests, we have found it difficult to return the excess bandwidth before the end of June.”
NCC commissioners disagreed with Taiwan Mobile’s explanation, saying it has other ways to protect its users.
“There are multiple ways for the company to consolidate the networks. Why does it have to choose the one that is difficult to complete within a short period of time?” NCC Chief Secretary Huang Wen-che (黃文哲) said on behalf of the commissioners.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
Taiwan’s three major international carriers are increasing booking fees, with EVA Airways having already increased the charge to US$28 per flight segment from US$25, while China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines are set to follow suit. Booking fees are charged by airlines through a global distribution system (GDS) and passed on to passengers. Carriers that apply the fees include CAL, EVA, Starlux and Tigerair Taiwan. A GDS is a computerized network operated by a company that connects airlines with travel agents and ticketing platforms, allowing reservations to be made and processed in real time. Major players include Amadeus, Sabre and Travelport. EVA Air began
RSS