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December 7, 2009
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Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd. (CHT) is gradually reducing its subscriber estimation for MOD (multimedia-on-demand) offerings. The company expects its MOD subscribers to reach 700,000 at the end of 2009 and increase to 1 million by the end of 2010. Initially, management provided an estimate that its MOD subscriber base will reach 2 million by the end of 2010. However, severe global economic recession that hit Taiwan hard forced the company to this downward revision.
Chunghwa launched 13-channel MOD services in the greater Taipei area. MOD subscribers use IPTV services in urban areas of Taiwan. In order to expand its user base, Chunghwa plans to offer application services, together with existing video/audio content. The company has also decided to start GPON (gigabit passive optical network) in order to increase the available Internet bandwidth for MOD subscribers. Chunghwa plans to promote MOD through subsidized LCD TVs with built-in STBs. The company will introduce TV content from Hong-Kong based TVB.
Nevertheless, Chunghwa has witnessed significant subscriber growth for its Mobile Internet Services segment, thanks to a rising demand for 3G mobile broadband and smart-phones in Taiwan. Management is now expecting that its subscriber base for mobile Internet services will more than double to approximately 370,000 at the end of 2009 compared to just 160,000 at the end of 2008. The company has further predicted that it will be able to add 200,000 mobile Internet subscribers in 2010.
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