Nokia to set up R & D center in Taiwan early next year

Taipei, Dec. 4, 2003 (CENS)--With an investment of NT$300 million (US$8.8 million at US$1 = NT$34), Nokia's R & D center in Taiwan is to be inaugurated early next year, according to Mike Wang, general manager of Nokia Taiwan Co.

The Finland-based Nokia Co. is a leading mobile communication product manufacturer in the world and also offers technical information on mobile devices to help developers create mobile applications. The company's R & D center in Taiwan will cooperate with local content providers to create more content services for its 3G mobile phones, Wang disclosed.

Nokia Taiwan has beaten its counterparts in Japan and S. Korea to set up a R&D center in Taiwan. The projected center here is the second one of its kind in Asia; the first one was already established in Singapore. Apart from the centers in Asia, Nokia has also operated similar centers in some European countries.

Wang noted that Nokia's R&D center in Taiwan would play a role as a 'mini system' for 3G mobile phones, which will include platforms for switching equipment, transceiver base stations, and servers, etc. Nokia Taiwan has already cooperated with some domestic content providers, namely, Soft-World International Corp. and Softstar Entertainment Inc., to develop more application services for 3G handsets. Moreover, it will closely ally with local telecom firms to reinforce its technologies in global positioning system (GPS) service and streaming service.

Wang said that the planned R&D center here can provide services to the markets not only in Taiwan, but also in mainland China as well as other Chinese communities in the world. He emphasized that Taiwan's content providers, through the cooperation with Nokia, can provide their services to all Chinese with Nokia's 3-G cell phones in the world.

Taiwan's large telecom firms such as Taiwan Cellular Corp. and Chunghwa Telecom Co. will start to offer telecom services for 3G mobile phones next year. So, Wang predicted that there would be growing demand for 3G cell phones in the domestic market in the next two years.

Last year Nokia won the bids offered by Taiwan Cellular and Chunghwa Telecom to purchase 3G-infrastructure equipment. And this has encouraged Nokia to plant its roots deeper on the island.