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Wireless Federation » archive for 'Taiwan Mobile'

Chunghwa expects a raise in subscribers & revenue with the launch of 3G iPhone (Taiwan)

  • November 28th, 2008
  • 10:32 am

With the launch of third-generation iPhone in Taiwan, Chunghwa Telecom, Taiwan’s largest telecom service provider in terms of revenue is hoping to pull more subscribers and enhance revenue. CHT will begin selling iPhones from Dec. 13.

Executive Vice President Lin Jen-Hon said, “We hope our revenue and subscribers will increase after the launch of iPhone.” He further said Chunghwa will seek to “satisfy all customers’ demand” for the iPhone, but declined to give specific figures on sales targets.

For the period from January-October, telco’s revenue rose 0.1% to NT$155.46 billion from NT$155.25 billion a year earlier. The subscriber base totals to 8.87 million and 3.24 million 3G users as of September.

Chunghwa doesn’t have exclusive rights to sell the iPhone in Taiwan, Lin added. Taiwan Mobile Co., the competitor of CHT is in no mood to negotiate with Apple to sell iPhones as of now.

“The economy is very bad now. Selling the phone would mean subsidizing the iPhone heavily, so we don’t have any current plan to do so,” said Rosie Yu, Taiwan Mobile’s spokeswoman and vice president for finance.

Taiwan Mobile launches BlackBerry Bold

  • October 13th, 2008
  • 8:17 am

Taiwan Mobile (TWN) and Research In Motion (RIM) has launched the BlackBerry Bold smartphone in Taiwan, the first BlackBerry smartphone to support tri-band HSDPA high-speed networks around the world. The BlackBerry Bold from Taiwan Mobile targets business professionals and power user and it comes with hybrid QWERTY-BoPoMoFo keyboard for Chinese input. According to Norm Lo, Vice President of Asia Pacific, RIM, “The BlackBerry Bold smartphone blends exceptional functionality and performance in a stylish design together with localized needs for the Taiwanese market. We are very excited to be working with Taiwan Mobile to introduce this breakthrough smartphone “.

Taiwan Mobile launches GPS service in cooperation with Garmin (Taiwan)

  • August 12th, 2008
  • 1:28 pm

Taiwan Mobile has launched a customized GPS service in collaboration with Garmin.

The service will be available to the TWM’s mobile subscribers for a one off payment of NT$1,200 (US$38.5) or 13 monthly payments of NT$100 and they will be able access to the GPS service on more than 70 handsets.

TWM aims to boost the revenues generated by mobile VAS to 10% of its total revenues by year-end 2008 compared to 9% currently.

According to further reports, Garmin and TWM may extend their current cooperation to include Garmin’s forthcoming Nuvifone GPS-enabled phone.

   

3G handsets in Taiwan expected to reach 11 million by year - end (Taiwan)

  • July 22nd, 2008
  • 12:53 pm

According to a report from China Economic News Service, Taiwan’s cellular operators are expected to have signed up more than eleven million 3G handset users by the end of this year.

3G handset users account for more than one third of all cellular subscribers. Chunghwa Telecom currently has around three million 3G users, having already surpassed its end-2008 target of 2.8 million, while Far EasTone (FET) has 2.2 million 3G subscribers and Taiwan Mobile has 1.8 million. Smaller operators like Vibo and Asia Pacific Broadband Wireless add another million.

   

Taiwan Mobile hopes to double 3G subs (Taiwan)

  • January 16th, 2008
  • 7:51 am

The Taiwanese cellco Taiwan Mobile says it is aiming to double its 3G user base in 2008, from 1.3 million now to 2.6 million by year-end. The firm plans to procure between 1.1 million and 1.2 million handsets this year, of which around half will be 3G models, chief business officer Cliff Lai told DigiTimes.

   

 

Yahoo! upgrades mobile services, signs up 6 Asian operators

  • June 21st, 2007
  • 10:31 am

Yahoo! has unveiled the latest version of its mobile service, Yahoo! Go for Mobile 2.0. The service is generally available in the US now, after a beta release in January, and localised versions will launch in beta on 22 June in 13 other countries. The internet search platform works with some 200 handsets, rising to 400 by year-end. It will also be pre-loaded on new devices from Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, LG and HTC that begin rolling out later this year. New features include quicker searching, the ability to read more types of e-mail attachments, maps and GPS integration, and calendar and address book functions. At the CommunicAsia trade show, the company also announced that its has signed up six Asian mobile operators to distribute Yahoo! oneSearch. With a combined subscriber base of over 100 million, the six mobile operators are Globe Telecom (Philippines), Idea Cellular (India), LG Telecom (Korea), Maxis Communications (Malaysia), Telkomsel (Indonesia) and Taiwan Mobile.

(Asia)

   

Taiwan receives 13 WiMAX applications

  • June 12th, 2007
  • 2:55 pm

Telegeography writes…The Taiwanese government has received 13 applications for the six regional WiMAX licences it has on offer. Bidders include the island’s three main cellular operators, Chunghwa Telecom, Far EasTone and Taiwan Mobile, plus local equipment manufacturer Tecom, which is bidding in partnership with 3G operator Vibo, and electronics firm Tatung. Fixed line operator Asia Pacific Broadband Telecom and PHS provider Fitel have also submitted applications, according to a statement from the National Communications Commission.

Three of the available 2.5GHz concessions cover northern Taiwan, while the other three cover the south of the country. Six of the 13 bidders have made applications for licences in both the north and the south, Dow Jones reports. The licences will be valid for six years and operators will be permitted to form partnerships with other licence winners to create a national footprint. Two concessions will be reserved for new entrants. The winning bidders are expected to be announced by the end of next month.

   

 
 

Taiwan Mobile to up stake in TFN

  • March 2nd, 2007
  • 1:02 pm

Telegeography writes…Taiwan Mobile has announced that it plans to increase its stake in wireline operator Taiwan Fixed Network (TFN). The cellco already holds 9.95% of TFN and is looking to acquire between 41% and 90% through a public offer via its subsidiary Taihsing International Telecommunications (TIT). DigiTimes reports that TIT will fund the acquisition via bank loans, plus a loan and a cash injection from its parent. Taiwan Mobile says the deal should boost its annual turnover by 19%.

Meanwhile, Taiwan’s third largest cellular operator Far EasTone (FET) has been classified as a leading operator by the country’s telecoms regulator, the National Communications Commission (NCC). The official recognition means that FET must now submit all proposed tariff alterations to the NCC for approval. To be classed as a leading player an operator must have a market share of at least 25%.

 

 

 

Bridge Mobile launches mobile travel portal

  • January 15th, 2007
  • 8:02 am

ZDnetIndia writes…Subscribers of the Bridge Mobile Alliance member networks can now turn to their mobile phones for directions and other travel tips when they visit various urban areas around Asia.

Bridge Mobile announced Thursday the launch of Bridge ConciergeGo, a one-stop mobile travel portal that provides travelers and roamers convenient access to useful content such as weather and city information on their mobile phones.

Co-developed with enterprise software developer Sybase, Bridge ConciergeGo is available to roamers on Bridge Mobile Alliance member networks, which include regional telecom companies like SingTel of Singapore and Malaysia’s Maxis.

The new location-based service currently covers eight Asian markets and 13 major cities, including Australia (Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane), Hong Kong, India (New Delhi, Mumbai), Indonesia (Jakarta, Bali), Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Philippines (Manila), Singapore and Taiwan (Taipei).

In a press statement, Seow Yoke Kong, vice president, service and technology development of Bridge Mobile, said the service was built to address the growing need for information mobility.

“With Bridge ConciergeGo, users can conveniently obtain essential local travel information and merchant promotions within the convenience of their mobile phones when they roam, thereby enhancing their roaming experience across Asia on Bridge Mobile Alliance member networks,” said Seow.

The portal utilizes Sybase’s AvantGo service–a free push-based mobile Internet service that delivers rich, personalized mobile Web sites to smartphones and personal digital assistants (PDAs).

According to Bridge Mobile, access to the Bridge ConciergeGo portal is free and requires no subscription or pre-registration, though users still need to pay roaming charges. Mobile phone users can access Bridge ConciergeGo at http://conciergego.mobi.

The Bridge Mobile executive said he expects the portal to become a potential launch pad for other location-based applications to be developed in the future.

Formed in November 2004, Bridge Mobile Alliance is currently made up of nine mobile operators in Asia-Pacific, namely, India’s Airtel, Hong Kong’s CSL, Macau’s CTM, Philippines’ Globe Telecom, Malaysia’s Maxis, SingTel Mobile in Singapore, SingTel Optus in Australia, Taiwan Mobile, and Indonesia’s Telkomsel, as well as nine technology associate members.

 

Taiwan market: CHT and TWM to offer mobile contactless credit card payment services

  • January 12th, 2007
  • 3:28 pm

DigiTimes writes…Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) announced it will soon test Visa Wave contactless credit-card payment services through its CHT9000 handset while Taiwan Mobile (TWM) announced the pilot run of MasterCard Mobile PayPass contactless credit-card payment services through the Nokia 3220 handset.

CHT will offer the Visa Wave service on a trial basis to 100 people through its CHT9000 handset in cooperation with Visa International Service Association and the local credit card issuer Chinatrust Commercial Bank, according to CHT. Visa Wave can be used at about 1,000 retail stores initially, with the amount of each transaction to be limited to NT$3,000 (US$92), CHT said.

While the Visa Wave service CHT is offering is based on RFID (radio frequency identification) technology, CHT plans to offer handsets with built-in NFC (near field communication) contactless credit-card payment functions when the market is mature, CHT noted. Chinatrust was the first to introduce Visa Wave credit cards in Taiwan in March 2005, CHT indicated.

The MasterCard Mobile PayPass is based on NFC technology and Taiwan is the second place in the world and Asia’s first to introduce the mobile credit-card payment scheme, TWM pointed out. Through cooperation with MasterCard and Taipei Fubon Bank, TWM will begin a trial run with 100 selected users at about 2,500 retail stores around Taiwan at the end of January, with a transaction amount limited to NT$3,000 per transaction and to NT$15,000 in total a month, TWM noted.