Taiwan-based Accton Technology Corp unveiled in Tokyo yesterday what it is touting as the world's first mobile phone with built-in Skype software that can be used to make free calls over the Internet without the assistance of a personal computer.
The company said in a press release that the WiFi SkyFone WM1185-T wireless mobile phone will benefit more than 50 million customers of Skype as well as companies and households which have not yet used Skype, because they can use it to make peer-to-peer (P2P) Internet calls to any phone users in the world without having to switch on their computers.
As the world's fastest growing P2P Voice-over-IP software, Skype has already been downloaded by more than 190 million people worldwide. It is used by more than 4 million people simultaneously at any given time, the company said.
In recognition of Skype's vast potential, the company said that it began developing telecommunication devices using the Skype technology one year ago and that it has come out with products suitable for families and companies.
The company said that it is one of Skype's partners around the world and that the WiFi SkyFone WM1185-T is the world's first mobile phone which can be used to make Internet calls independent of any computer.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
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BACK TO WORK? Prosecutors said they are considering filing an appeal, while the Hsinchu City Government said it has applied for Ann Kao’s reinstatement as mayor The High Court yesterday found suspended Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) not guilty of embezzling assistant fees, reducing her sentence to six months in prison commutable to a fine from seven years and four months. The verdict acquitted Kao of the corruption charge, but found her guilty of causing a public official to commit document forgery. The High Prosecutors’ Office said it is reviewing the ruling and considering whether to file an appeal. The Taipei District Court in July last year sentenced Kao to seven years and four months in prison, along with a four-year deprivation of civil rights, for contravening the Anti-Corruption