■ Media
Comcast, Disney pen deal
Comcast Corp and the Walt Disney Co said on Tuesday they signed a landmark multibillion-dollar distribution deal that allows the cable operator to distribute Disney content through its video-on-demand service. As part of the multiyear deal, Comcast, the largest US cable TV operator, also agreed to buy Disney's 39.5 percent stake in the E! Entertainment Television channel for US$1.23 billion. Comcast currently holds a 60 percent interest in the channel. No other financial terms of the deal were disclosed.
■ Property
China raises project fees
The Chinese government will double land use fees for new construction projects from Jan. 1 to cool frantic expansion in the property market, state media reported yesterday. This means that the fee will rise to up to 140 yuan (US$18) per square meter, according to a notice issued by the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Land and Resources and the central bank. The aim is to curb excessive growth in fixed asset investment, the 21st Century Business Herald said, citing a notice published by the central bank.
■ Computers
Dell looking up
Driven by solid sales of laptops and a more diverse product line, computer maker Dell Inc finally had some good news for investors amid an ongoing federal investigation of the company's accounting and financial reporting. In a delayed, preliminary earnings report for the last quarter, Dell beat analysts' expectations, earning US$677 million, or 30 cents per share, on revenue of US$14.4 billion, compared with earnings of US$606 million, or 25 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago. Analysts had been looking for quarterly earnings of 24 cents per share on sales of US$14.44 billion, a survey by Thomson Financial said.
■ Internet
Livedoor strips segment
Japanese Internet startup Livedoor Co plans to sell all its financial segment to investment firm Advantage Partners LLP, news reports said yesterday. Business daily Nihon Keizai reported the plan, adding that Livedoor will convene a board meeting as early as this week to approve the sale of Livedoor Financial Holdings Co, whose seven firms include brokerage and consumer credit operations. Livedoor's financial businesses generated 80 percent of the group's operating profit and the sale would mark the collapse of a business model built by former President Takafumi Horie, the business daily said.
■ Mergers
French energy deal delayed
French government spokesman Jean-Francois Cope said yesterday that a court decision that delays the proposed merger of energy groups GDF and Suez did not fundamentally put the deal in question. "There was certainly a decision by the appeals court but it does not put the project's relevance in question," Cope told the television channel I-Tele. On Tuesday, the Paris appeals court upheld a decision by a lower court in favour of Gaz de France's works council -- institutions in French companies through which trade unions have a voice in operations -- that sought a postponement of a company board meeting on the merger, scheduled for yesterday.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS