Claiming to be the nation's first "real" mobile city, Kaohsiung City yesterday inaugurated wireless Internet connections in parts of the city to provide free access in the public.
"I believe the wireless infrastructure will bring more benefits to our people and visitors," Kao-hsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (
PHOTO: CHANG CHUNG-YI, TAIPEI TIMES
Hsieh tested the system while riding a boat on Kaohsiung's landmark Love River, and he said "the result is excellent ... the connection speed is faster than the broadband system I use at home."
The wireless service is currently available in or near the city government building, the City Council, the Cultural Center and Hsinkuang Wharf, said Tony Wu (吳國棟), chief operation officer of Easpnet Taiwan Inc (數位通國際網路). Easpnet became the contractor for the project after winning the bid in October.
By the end of next April, the service will be extended to downtown Lingya, Shinshing and Chienchin Districts. Kaohsiung's other eight districts will receive the service by the end of next year, giving the city 80 percent coverage, Wu said.
The mobile city project will cost the Kaohsiung City Government an estimated NT$93 million, Wu said. The service will be free for one year after the entire project is completed, or from the end of next year, he said.
The system will also be used to improve security. The wireless connection is linked to monitoring systems set in crossroads, a digital fire alert system, and a vehicle tracking system, which allows the police force and fire department to obtain information instantly.
The Taipei City government also has a similar plan to bring wireless connection to the whole city by the end of next year.
The government is currently testing the system in the area around the Taipei City Government building in Hsinyi District. By the end of this year, the service will be officially launched along 20 Mass Rapid Transportation stations.
The wireless infrastructure, however, has reportedly been less well received than expected by Taipei residents due to compatibility problems.
The Taipei City Government contracted different companies to build the wireless system in different areas. State-run Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信) covers the general Hsinyi District, Qware Systems Inc (安源資訊) is in charge of MRT stations, while restaurants and coffee shops have their own wireless service providers, forcing users to apply for another user account when they enter another area.
One official at Easpnet who did not want to be named said this problem will not occur with Kaohsiung's wireless network. However, he acknowledged that access there is still not completely stable due to signal interference in the area.
The company will streamline this later to make the system run more smoothly, he said.
MULTIFACETED: A task force has analyzed possible scenarios and created responses to assist domestic industries in dealing with US tariffs, the economics minister said The Executive Yuan is tomorrow to announce countermeasures to US President Donald Trump’s planned reciprocal tariffs, although the details of the plan would not be made public until Monday next week, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. The Cabinet established an economic and trade task force in November last year to deal with US trade and tariff related issues, Kuo told reporters outside the legislature in Taipei. The task force has been analyzing and evaluating all kinds of scenarios to identify suitable responses and determine how best to assist domestic industries in managing the effects of Trump’s tariffs, he
TIGHT-LIPPED: UMC said it had no merger plans at the moment, after Nikkei Asia reported that the firm and GlobalFoundries were considering restarting merger talks United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world’s No. 4 contract chipmaker, yesterday launched a new US$5 billion 12-inch chip factory in Singapore as part of its latest effort to diversify its manufacturing footprint amid growing geopolitical risks. The new factory, adjacent to UMC’s existing Singapore fab in the Pasir Res Wafer Fab Park, is scheduled to enter volume production next year, utilizing mature 22-nanometer and 28-nanometer process technologies, UMC said in a statement. The company plans to invest US$5 billion during the first phase of the new fab, which would have an installed capacity of 30,000 12-inch wafers per month, it said. The
Taiwan’s official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month rose 0.2 percentage points to 54.2, in a second consecutive month of expansion, thanks to front-loading demand intended to avoid potential US tariff hikes, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. While short-term demand appeared robust, uncertainties rose due to US President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policy, CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy this year would be characterized by high-level fluctuations and the volatility would be wilder than most expect, Lien said Demand for electronics, particularly semiconductors, continues to benefit from US technology giants’ effort
‘SWASTICAR’: Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s close association with Donald Trump has prompted opponents to brand him a ‘Nazi’ and resulted in a dramatic drop in sales Demonstrators descended on Tesla Inc dealerships across the US, and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump. Waving signs with messages such as “Musk is stealing our money” and “Reclaim our country,” the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as terrorism. Hundreds rallied on Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in Manhattan. Some blasted Musk, the world’s richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his
RSS