Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信) and Far EasTone Telecommunications Co Ltd (FET, 遠傳電信) yesterday spent an additional NT$4.11 billion (US$135.2 million) combined to secure optimal 5G bandwidth, boosting the nation’s 5G auction total to NT$142.19 billion.
The auction price was the world’s third-highest after Germany and Italy, which raised 6.55 billion euros each through 5G bandwidth auctions.
In the second phase of the auction, telecoms bid to secure bandwidth on optimal zones in the 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) frequency band, after month-long negotiations over arrangements of frequency regions failed.
Chunghwa Telecom spent another NT$2.08 billion acquiring spectrum from 3.42GHz to 3.51GHz, the best zone in the 3.5GHz band, given extensive equipment supply and no second-harmonic frequency interference from existing 4G networks.
“Despite a higher-than-expected cost, our plan for 5G deployment remains unchanged. We aim to launch 5G service in July, based on which our customers will be able to watch the Tokyo Olympics in 4K and VR,” Chunghwa chairman Sheih Chi-mau (謝繼茂) said in a statement.
The nation’s biggest telecom has spent NT$48.37 billion to win bandwidth in the 5G auction, company data showed. In the previous round, Chunghwa Telecom secured 90 megahertz (MHz) of premium bandwidth in the 3.5GHz band.
FET spent an additional NT$2.03 billion on securing spectrum from 3.34GHz to 3.42GHz, both also considered good zones, the company said.
FET plans to launch 5G service in the third quarter.
Although it did not win frequency in the best area, the carrier said that it is confident that it can still offer faster Internet connections and better 5G services than its rivals, as it won 80MHz bandwidth in the 3.5GHz band.
FET has spent NT$43.04 billion in the two rounds of bidding, company data showed.
Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大) and Taiwan Star Telecom Co (台灣之星) yesterday did not spend anything vying for the optimal zones, gaining space in the spectrum of 3.51GHZ to 3.57GHZ and 3.3GHZ to 3.34GHZ respectively, the companies said.
Those zones are considered less ideal, as fewer manufacturers provide terminals and equipment for them and they might experience interference from satellites, a market observer said.
Taiwan Mobile said that its bandwidth would be enough to serve customers for the next decade, as it plans to launch 5G service in the third quarter, while Taiwan Star said that it would launch its new service as soon as possible.
Taiwan Mobile and Taiwan Star spent NT$30.65 billion and NT$19.7 billion respectively in the two phases respectively, companies data showed.
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) yesterday said that its research institute has launched its first advanced artificial intelligence (AI) large language model (LLM) using traditional Chinese, with technology assistance from Nvidia Corp. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), said the LLM, FoxBrain, is expected to improve its data analysis capabilities for smart manufacturing, and electric vehicle and smart city development. An LLM is a type of AI trained on vast amounts of text data and uses deep learning techniques, particularly neural networks, to process and generate language. They are essential for building and improving AI-powered servers. Nvidia provided assistance
DOMESTIC SUPPLY: The probe comes as Donald Trump has called for the repeal of the US$52.7 billion CHIPS and Science Act, which the US Congress passed in 2022 The Office of the US Trade Representative is to hold a hearing tomorrow into older Chinese-made “legacy” semiconductors that could heap more US tariffs on chips from China that power everyday goods from cars to washing machines to telecoms equipment. The probe, which began during former US president Joe Biden’s tenure in December last year, aims to protect US and other semiconductor producers from China’s massive state-driven buildup of domestic chip supply. A 50 percent US tariff on Chinese semiconductors began on Jan. 1. Legacy chips use older manufacturing processes introduced more than a decade ago and are often far simpler than
STILL HOPEFUL: Delayed payment of NT$5.35 billion from an Indian server client sent its earnings plunging last year, but the firm expects a gradual pickup ahead Asustek Computer Inc (華碩), the world’s No. 5 PC vendor, yesterday reported an 87 percent slump in net profit for last year, dragged by a massive overdue payment from an Indian cloud service provider. The Indian customer has delayed payment totaling NT$5.35 billion (US$162.7 million), Asustek chief financial officer Nick Wu (吳長榮) told an online earnings conference. Asustek shipped servers to India between April and June last year. The customer told Asustek that it is launching multiple fundraising projects and expected to repay the debt in the short term, Wu said. The Indian customer accounted for less than 10 percent to Asustek’s
Gasoline and diesel prices this week are to decrease NT$0.5 and NT$1 per liter respectively as international crude prices continued to fall last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. Effective today, gasoline prices at CPC and Formosa stations are to decrease to NT$29.2, NT$30.7 and NT$32.7 per liter for 92, 95 and 98-octane unleaded gasoline respectively, while premium diesel is to cost NT$27.9 per liter at CPC stations and NT$27.7 at Formosa pumps, the companies said in separate statements. Global crude oil prices dropped last week after the eight OPEC+ members said they would
RSS