Chunghwa Telecom reveals details of new value-added service platform to launch alongside iPhone 3G

Kaddy Chung and Ricky Morris, Taipei; Adam Hwang, DIGITIMES [Friday 21 November 2008] Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) on November 20 unveiled Hami, a package of free value-added services specifically designed for CHT 3G subscribers using iPhone 3G handsets. Hami will be launched alongside the iPhone 3G in December, according to CHT. The name Hami derives from the Chinese for honeydew melon, continuing the fruity theme of the iPhone, and was chosen as it sounds like "happy me" in English, according to CHT's explanation. (This "creative" use of naming is not uncommon in the local market.) More interesting, the fact that CHT has demonstrated Hami in action this week despite announcing it had inked the deal with Apple to distribute the iPhone in Taiwan only last weekend, is evidence that the companies must have reached an agreement some time earlier. Hami consists of 11 services including news, weather, stock market tracker etc., CHT indicated. CHT will set up an editing team responsible for producing audio/video and image content for Hami, the company noted. Although CHT has not yet announced pricing for the iPhone 3G and related services, it is speculated the telco will subsidize the handset to cost NT$0 for an 8GB model and NT$2,990 (US$90) for a 16GB model along with a two-year contract, according to industry sources. CHT currently offers the HTC Diamond at a subsidized cost of NT$2,990 alongside a NT$1,683 per month two-year 3G service contract. The company also announced recently a voice and 3G data tariff costing N$1,789 per month. As is typical for the Taiwan market, neither of these tariffs include any free call or data allowance, instead charges are deducted from the monthly subscription fee, before the company bills for any excess or ineligible charges (as defined by the contract). Chunghwa Telecom will offer Hami, value-added services tailored for its iPhone 3G users Photo: Kaddy Chung, Digitimes, November 2008

Foxconn, Quanta - Taiwan CM and Foundries Fighting Low Margin Business

Quanta might cut component orders to Foxconn, says paper

from DIGITIMES: IT news from Asia

Due to Foxconn Electronics' (Hon Hai Precision Industry's) aggressive deployment into the notebook OEM market, including taking orders for Apple's MacBooks from Quanta Computer, Quanta is considering canceling part of its component orders to Foxconn, according to a Chinese-languageEconomy Daily News (EDN) report citing a report by JP Morgan.

Taiwan DRAM makers may have net profit margin of -72% in 2008

from DIGITIMES: IT news from Asia

Taiwan's major DRAM makers may see their overall net profit margin fall to -72% in 2008, with combined losses of NT$112.5 billion (US$3.42 billion), according to the Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK) of the Taiwan government-backed Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI). Domestic players' less price competitiveness and shrinking consumer demand worldwide have resulted in the worst downturn in Taiwan's DRAM industry.

LG Display said to be top LCD panel maker in September

Siu Han, Taipei; Yvonne Yu, DIGITIMES [Tuesday 28 October 2008]

Taking advantage of a weak Korean won and the LG Group's vertically integrated supply chain, LG Display shipped 9 million large-size panels in September, taking the top spot among LCD panel makers worldwide, according to market sources.

Total global large-size LCD panel shipments reached 40.2 units in September, up 3.5% sequentially and up 8.4% on year, according to market sources. LG Display ranked number one with a 22% share of total shipments, with Samsung Electronics accounting for 21.6%. Taiwan makers AU Optronics (AUO) and Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO) had a 17% and 16% share, respectively.

Global LCD TV panel shipments increased 6.8% compared to August, while LCD panel shipments for monitors and notebooks increased by 1.8% and 3.6%, respectively.

Taiwan-based panel maker AUO indicated that its current market order visibility is low, and the panel maker estimates that its shipments for large-size panels will drop 5-8% in the fourth quarter.

Taiwan's international Internet bandwidth rose to over 223Gbps at end of 3Q08

Press release, October 28; Adam Hwang, DIGITIMES [Tuesday 28 October 2008]

Taiwan's direct Internet connections with 19 countries (including Hong Kong and Macao) reached a total bandwidth of 223.701Gbps as of the end of third-quarter 2008, increasing by 0.55% on quarter and by 23.59% on year, according to the government-sponsored Taiwan Network Information Center (TWNIC).

HiNet had an international bandwidth of 98.331Gbps at the end of last quarter, the largest among ISPs or non-commercial equivalents in Taiwan, followed by TWGate with 22.296Gbps, SeedNet with 18.621Gbps, TFN with 15.778Gbps, EBIX with 12.465Gbps, NTT with 10.420Gbps, So-net with 7.866Gbps, ASNet with 6.244Gbps, TWAREN with 5.699Gbps and REACH with 4.977Gbps.

Taiwan's top-five partners in terms of Internet connection bandwidth, 3Q08
Country/area	Bandwidth (Gbps)	Q/Q	Y/Y
US	95.334	(4.22%)	26.75%
Japan	46.663	(1.94%)	7.97%
Hong Kong	46.249	7.04%	37.43%
China	24.786	13.71%	41.16%
South Korea	2.854	5.76%	96.22%

Source: TWNIC, compiled by Digitimes, October 2008