ENTERTAINMENT
FTC working on KTV merger
The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) yesterday told lawmakers that it would work toward giving its approval for merger plans between the nation’s two largest karaoke parlor (KTV) chains, Holiday Entertainment Co (好樂迪) and Cash Box KTV (錢櫃), as long as the companies safeguard the interests of consumers. The regulator said that it would begin the approval process, such as gathering the opinion of stakeholders and holding public hearings. The two karaoke chains have had numerous failed attempts to merge in the past 16 years. Separately yesterday, the regulator said that it would ask Tesla Inc to explain its erratic pricing decisions, after the US electric vehicle maker reversed price cuts and a decision to shutter dealerships, adding that such behavior might be anti-competitive.
PATENTS
Acer pays Microsoft directly
Acer Inc (宏碁) chairman and CEO Jason Chen (陳俊聖) on Tuesday said that the PC maker’s royalty payments to Microsoft Inc are governed by contracts with the US software giant and are not paid by partner original design manufacturers and electronics manufacturing services providers. Chen’s comments came amid a patent dispute between Microsoft and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海) that prompted personal rebukes by Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) earlier that day. Acer pays Microsoft directly to fulfill the conditions of the licensing contracts, Chen said.
ELECTRONICS
FIT launches flagship store
Foxconn Interconnect Technology Ltd (FIT, 鴻騰科技), a Hong Kong-listed affiliate of Hon Hai, yesterday opened its flagship store at Taipei’s Syntrend Creative Park, a shopping complex focused on consumer electronics and tech gadgets. The store showcases new products by FIT’s newly acquired brands, Belkin and Linksys, which Hon Hai in March last year purchased for US$866 million as part of its plans to diversify beyond its core contract manufacturing business and into managing brands for smart home appliances and Internet of Things products for consumers.
E-COMMERCE
PChome Thai gains licenses
PChome Online Inc (網路家庭) on Monday announced that subsidiary PChome Thai has been granted licenses to operate two electronic payment services by Thai regulators. The approvals would allow the company’s customers to make credit and debit card payments, as well as electronic payments and fund transfers, via automated teller machines and mobile phones. PChome Thai said that it is also working on launching before the end of this quarter a payment service that is compatible with popular social media platforms in Thailand, including Instagram and Facebook.
EQUITIES
Electronics sector lifts TAIEX
Local shares yesterday closed slightly higher on thin turnover as gains were capped ahead of strong technical resistance at about 10,400 points, dealers said. The bellwether electronics sector remained a driver of the latest upturn as investors took cues from gains posted by tech stocks in the US overnight, while non-high-tech stocks appeared mixed throughout the session, the dealers said. The TAIEX ended up 29.99 points, or 0.29 percent, at 10,373.32, after moving between 10,331.27 and 10,373.32, on turnover of NT$94.36 billion, dropping from turnover of NT$111.14 billion in the previous session.
PATENTS: MediaTek Inc said it would not comment on ongoing legal cases, but does not expect the legal action by Huawei to affect its business operations Smartphone integrated chips designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) on Friday said that a lawsuit filed by Chinese smartphone brand Huawei Technologies Co (華為) over alleged patent infringements would have little impact on its operations. In an announcement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, MediaTek said that it would not comment on an ongoing legal case. However, the company said that Huawei’s legal action would have little impact on its operations. MediaTek’s statement came after China-based PRIP Research said on Thursday that Huawei filed a lawsuit with a Chinese district court claiming that MediaTek infringed on its patents. The infringement mentioned in the lawsuit likely involved
Taipei is today suspending work, classes and its US$2.4 trillion stock market as Typhoon Gaemi approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Authorities had yesterday issued a warning that the storm could affect people on land and canceled some ship crossings and domestic flights. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) expects its local chipmaking fabs to maintain normal production, the company said in an e-mailed statement. The main chipmaker for Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp said it has activated routine typhoon alert
GROWTH: TSMC increased its projected revenue growth for this year to more than 25 percent, citing stronger-than-expected demand for AI devices and smartphones The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) yesterday raised its forecast for Taiwan’s GDP growth this year from 3.29 percent to 3.85 percent, as exports and private investment recovered faster than it predicted three months ago. The Taipei-based think tank also expects that Taiwan would see a 8.19 percent increase in exports this year, better than the 7.55 percent it projected in April, as US technology giants spent more money on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and development. “There will be more AI servers going forward, but it remains to be seen if the momentum would extend to personal computers, smartphones and
Catastrophic computer outages caused by a software update from one company have once again exposed the dangers of global technological dependence on a handful of players, experts said on Friday. A flawed update sent out by the little-known security firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc brought airlines, TV stations and myriad other aspects of daily life to a standstill. The outages affected companies or individuals that use CrowdStrike on the Microsoft Inc’s Windows platform. When they applied the update, the incompatible software crashed computers into a frozen state known as the “blue screen of death.” “Today CrowdStrike has become a household name, but not in