Three Taiwan WiMAX licensees obligated to have portions of equipment made locally

Hot systems
Bryan Chuang, Taipei; Adam Hwang, DIGITIMES [Friday 27 July 2007]

First International Telecom, Tatung Telecom and Far EasTone Telecommunications (FET), three of the six winning applicants awarded WiMAX operating licenses on July 26 by Taiwan's National Communications Commission (NCC), will be required to have certain percentages of their WiMAX equipment produced by Taiwan-based manufacturers.

The obligations are due to the fact that these operators are involved in subsidized WiMAX-related R&D projects under the government's Mobile Taiwan (M-Taiwan) Program, according to the Industrial Development Bureau (IDB) under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

Mobile communications operators undertaking such R&D projects should, as specified in their contracts, have a percentage their procurements comprised of Taiwan-made equipment, IDB pointed out. The percentages are: 20% minimum for base stations, 80-100% for CPE (customer premises equipment), and 50% minimum for the whole infrastructure, IDB indicated.

The other three licensees are not under any obligations as they are not participants in the M-Taiwan Program, IDB noted