Stefan Hammond

U.S.-based China Digital Group has announced the official launch of its flagship portal in China, oWOW. The firm describes oWOW, an acronym for “Online Window On the World”, as a global gateway providing information on international culture, entertainment, education, and lifestyle activities for the Chinese-speaking audience. oWOW incorporates 10 advertising-supported channels on news, entertainment and […]

The China Network Information Center (CNNIC) has announced that San Francisco-based MyWeb Inc.com is joining CNNIC and other Web sites in China to develop a unified system to professionally audit Web traffic. MyWeb was invited by CNNIC, along with Sina.com, Netease, Capital Online, Legend and others in an effort titled “Unifying New Audit Standards & […]

Japan’s Hikari Tsushin Inc. is partnering with Hong Kong’s Pacific Century Cyberworks in a HK$839 million (US$108.2 million) takeover of electronic component manufacturer Golden Power International Holdings. Golden Power will be renamed Hikari Tsushin International Limited. The new company will expand into Internet-related activities while continuing its existing business: manufacturing and distribution of batteries and […]

Shares of Pacific Century Cyberworks rose 41 percent by Thursday’s close on Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index following market rumors. The increase was fueled by rumors in the Chinese-language press that PCCW had arranged an equity swap with Microsoft and was planning a Nasdaq listing. Both rumors were denied by PCCW chairman and CEO Richard […]

Federal Express Corp. and First Ecom.com say they have jointly developed a merchant settlement system to strengthen e-commerce across Asia. Global provider of Internet-based credit card payment solutions First Ecom.com has signed an agreement giving FedEx access to their e-payment processing solution for FedEx customers in the Asia-Pacific region. FedEx and First Ecom.com have also […]

Outblaze has announced the implementation of two new global services for all free Outblaze co-branded Web sites. The new services — Community Homepage Builder and Greeting Cards — allow end-users of Outblaze co-branded products to access, manage, and edit one homepage per user account, and to send electronic greeting cards from the same account. Both […]

Several of the world’s biggest recording companies jointly initiated legal action against two mainland-based Web sites distributing MP3 music files over the Internet. Sony Music, EMI, Warner Music, Universal Music International and China Records Guangzhou have lodged a pair of lawsuits in Beijing and Guangzhou against providers MyWeb and Tekson. According to the International Federation […]

Pacific Internet has announced that its Mumbai-based JV unit, Pacific Internet India, plans to launch Internet dial-up and corporate access services to 25 Indian cities by the end of next year. Pacific Internet commenced its India operations two weeks ago and has been aggressively recruiting professional staff to support its expansion plan. Pacific Internet India […]

AUNET, which is in the process of changing its name to iAsiaWorks, accelerated its Asian expansion with the acquisition of AT&T EasyLink Services Hong Kong. The company plans to build on the AT&T unit’s strong corporate and Internet customer base to speed the roll-out of turnkey Internet solutions for Hong Kong and China companies and […]

Pacific Century Cyberworks (PCC) has formed a strategic partnership between its PCC subsidiary and Trans World International (TWI) to deliver a fully converged service providing interactive digital video viewing and Web access. The new service, called Network of the World (NOW), will utilize at least three global Internet and digital video content production centers. TWI […]

Cable & Wireless HKT is advancing expansion plans for further submarine cable capacity. Cable & Wireless HKT are landing the US$1 billion Asia-Pacific Submarine Cable Network 2 (APCN-2) in Hong Kong. When completed in 2001, the new undersea cable system will provide fiber optic capacity of 2,560 Gbps. Cable & Wireless HKT’s South Lantau Cable […]

Newly renamed chinadotcom corp. has signed an agreement to jointly develop a pan-Asian interactive sports service with Agence France Presse (AFP). The service, AsiaSport.com, will provide Internet users with current sports news and interviews with sports figures throughout Asia. chinadotcom corp. (CHINA) will be responsible for Web site design, sales and marketing, and online advertising […]