Studio Press

Sony Ericsson announced that its handsets shipped in the quarter reached 13.3 million, a 41% increase compared to the same period last year, higher than general market growth but down 17% sequentially. Sales for the quarter were Euro 1,992 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 55%. Income before taxes was Euro 151 million, which represents a year-on-year increase of 115%. Net income more than tripled year-on- year to Euro 109 million. Earlier increases in R&D investment enabled Sony Ericsson to announce more new products during the first quarter than in previous years. These products included a further three Walkman phones; the quad-band edge W810, the high-end W950 with 4GB flash memory, and the mass market W300 clamshell. Building upon the success of bringing Sony’s very popular Walkman brand to the mobile phone, Sony Ericsson also announced the K800 and K790, flagship 3.2 megapixel imaging phones and the first Cyber-shot branded phones in the portfolio. Average Selling Price (ASP) rose 4% to Euro 149, reflecting the greater proportion of higher-end products entering the product mix due to the new phones for both KDDI and NTT DoCoMo in Japan. In GSM markets a number of lower priced handsets such as the Z300, J230, J220 started to ramp up and ship. In Japan, NTT DoCoMo announced and started shipping Sony Ericsson’s first FOMA phone, the SO902i, and KDDI launched the W41S, an EV-DO handset with Sony’s FeliCa multi-purpose IC card technology. Growth in the global handset market continued to outpace earlier expectations, and Sony Ericsson now forecasts the global market outlook for 2006 to be over 900 million units. Our previous guidance was 10% growth versus estimated 2005 market volumes of about 780 million units. In March, Sony Ericsson strengthened its strategy of focusing on compelling consumer mobile solutions through innovative mobile phones, accessories and PC cards by signing an agreement to sell its business-to-business Telemetry and Automotive M2M business units to Wavecom. “The first quarter has seen Sony Ericsson announce a host of exciting products which address a wide variety of consumer needs and lifestyle choices. We have announced flagship models in our three key strategic areas: music, imaging and enterprise, and feel well positioned to deliver an enhanced user experience at all price points of our portfolio. The W800, W550 and W600 Walkman phones were big sellers during the quarter and we have now sold 5.5 million Walkman branded phones since mid-August, proving the success of our mobile music strategy. With a total of eight Walkman phones now announced or shipping, plus the introduction of new Cyber-shot imaging phones, we are beginning to deliver the differentiation in our product portfolio which Sony Ericsson promised at the start of the joint venture,” said Miles Flint, President of Sony Ericsson.

BenQ today announced its consolidated revenue for the month of March. The company’s core business recorded sales of NT$ 20.7 billion, up 75% year-on-year. At the Taiwan parent company level, March revenue was NT$12.4 billion, up 25% year-on-year. BenQ’s LCD monitors posted strong growth in March in terms of sales and unit shipment. Driven by continuing strong demand for LCD monitors, the company shipped over 1.2 million units this month, hitting a new record high. Other product lines, such as optical disc drives and projectors, grew slightly in value terms month-on-month. “We believe revenue in the coming months should benefit from increasing shipment of BenQ-Siemens handsets,” according to Eric Ky Yu, BenQ’s Senior Vice President of Finance and Spokesperson. BenQ today also announced it has formed a strategic alliance with Lite-On IT in storage products. Lite-On IT will acquire BenQ’s storage-related assets including BenQ’s ODM customer portfolio, rights to use BenQ’s technology, and secure order commitments on BenQ-branded storage products. BenQ will receive approximately NT$1.2 billion in cash and acquire a 13% stake in Lite-On IT. Both companies expect to close the transaction on or about 1 June 2006. The transaction is expected to increase Lite-On IT’s global market share to 27%, making it the world’s No. 2 optical disk drive (ODD) maker. BenQ will continue focusing on marketing and sales of own-brand storage products. “With this alliance, we expect to benefit from increased focus and this strategic transaction should enable BenQ to better address brand and 3C opportunities,” added Mr. Yu.

El Phenomenon – as footballer Ronaldo is also called – gave us an exclusive interview. Find out how the star of our partner team Real Madrid uses his mobile phone and how many people have his private number. On average, how long do you use your mobile phone? I use my cellular very often. And most of the times I talk by phone it is me who makes the call. Do you consider yourself "addicted to mobile"? No, definitely, I use the phone but do not consider myself as an addict to it. To whom would you never give your mobile phone number? There are very few people who have my phone number. As an international athlete, who travels a lot, can you imagine your life without a mobile? Not anymore. Mobile phones solve a lot of problems abroad. Mainly, what do you use your mobile phone for the most? I use it for everything but obviously, my family and personal environment are the most important things in my life. What cellular tools do you use often? I think the tool I use the least is the voice mail. What do you have in common with BenQ? The first thing we have in common is the campaign for this year. In terms of project and winning mentality, I do think that we are in the same line, too. What is your predictition for the World Cup final game? Will Brazil be there? If yes, against what country? I hope Brazil get into the final but we cannot give any kind of favorite even to play it because there are many national teams who are able to win the World Cup.

Set up 15 years ago, the Intel Penang Design Centre has grown into a world-class design centre with a workforce of 1,000 local design and development engineers.The centre was responsible for designing 72 percent of the components and chips for desktop and laptop computers for the world market last year.Intel Corp's mobility group vice president Richard Malinowski said starting five years ago, the centre had shown its progress with Malaysian engineers involved in designing and developing the technology used for the global market."Last year, about 72 percent of the components and chips for computers worldwide were designed here. The engineers here have designed and created the most advanced technology for Intel and for users around the world," he said.Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon here Friday, Malinowski said the centre is among Intel's top three design centres outside the United States and responsible for designing the latest Pentium microprocessor and advanced personal computer (PC) chipset.When started in 1992, the centre had only 30 engineers who were mainly involved in low-end integrated circuit (IC) design involving microcontroller products, he said.He added that though the centre had only 300 engineers for the past five years, it managed to achieve vast progress and was now hiring 1,000 engineers.Intel Penang Design Centre's director S.K. Fong said engineers at the centre started doing original design for the PC chipset in 2002 and were working on full design of the microprocessor in 2004.He said the design team was now working on new products based on 65-nanometer and 45-nanometer technology.Besides IC design, the centre also runs the largest system validation lab and platform compatibility lab outside Intel US, Fong pointed out."We have already started the groundwork and after that the lab will be responsible for validation of all new Intel microprocessors before introduction to the market," he said.In terms of microprocessor design, the team had worked on the last two generations of the Pentium 4 central processing unit (CPU) codenamed Prescott and Cedarmill, Fong said.He said the team was now working on the next generation Celeron processor which is scheduled to be introduced to the world market early next year.The centre, he added, has won many prestigious awards and was also awarded 18 US patents with another 35 patents accepted for filing by the US Patent Office.Meanwhile, Koh said Intel had invested US$500 million in research and development (R&D) and design activities in the centre for the past five years.-- BERNAMA

REDtone International Bhd former chairman Lee Eng Sia reduced his shareholding to 10.9% after he sold 6.87 million shares on April 12. A filing to the stock exchange showed that he disposed of the 2.7% stake in a married deal. After the disposal, his direct interest in the company is reduced to 27.65 million shares. REDtone closed at 88 sen on April 12.

Motorola Multimedia Sdn Bhd has received the MSC Malaysia Leadership in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and R&D Award from the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC). In a statement on April 13, Motorola said the award, which was presented on April 7, recognised its leadership in software engineering in network management. "The award is a testament that innovation is at the heart of Motorola - innovation of next-generation technologies powered by next generation software," said Hong Kean Yong, general manager, Motorola Malaysia Software Centre, Global Software Group. He said the entrepreneurial spirit of Motorola Malaysia Software Centre's 300 software engineers, 99% of whom are Malaysians, was the driving force behind Motorola's R&D efforts and Made-in-Malaysia innovative solutions that were deployed in world-class implementations worldwide. Hong said Motorola undertook value-added R&D activities in the area of network management, specifically designing, developing, testing and deploying software solutions for the operations management centre of a public cellular network.

Maxis Communications Berhad and Research In Motion (RIM) have announced that the BlackBerry 8700gT would be available to consumers on 3 April. Operating on Maxis’ high-speed EDGE network, the new BlackBerry 8700g features a completely re-engineered device platform offering the best combined data and voice experience for mobile professionals. With a powerful Intel processor, 64 MB flash memory and 16 MB SDRAM, the BlackBerry 8700g provides noticeably faster web browsing, attachment viewing and application performance. “We are very excited to work with RIM to launch the new BlackBerry 8700g. As Maxis is the only mobile operator in Malaysia offering BlackBerry solutions on EDGE technology, our customers are assured of speedier connectivity, greater mobility and convenience,” said Fitri Abdullah, Maxis Senior General Manager and Head of Enterprise Business Division. “With over 1,500 base stations powering EDGE technology that provides up to three times the data speed of GPRS and a nationwide GPRS network, our customers are seamlessly connected wherever they go.”

The quad-band BlackBerry 8700g includes premium phone features such as dedicated phone keys, smart dialling, conference calling, speed dial, speakerphone, and Bluetooth support for hands-free headsets and car kits. In addition, the BlackBerry 8700g incorporates a QVGA (320 x 240) LCD display with a unique light sensing technology that automatically adjusts the display and keyboard lighting levels to provide optimized visibility in outdoor, indoor and dark environments. “The stylish and sophisticated BlackBerry 8700g, together with Maxis’ EDGE network, offers customers an exceptional web browsing and mobile application experience,” said Norm Lo, Vice President of Asia Pacific at Research In Motion. “We are very pleased to be working with Maxis to bring the innovative BlackBerry 8700g to customers in Malaysia.” For corporate customers, BlackBerry Enterprise ServerT software tightly integrates with Microsoft® Exchange, IBM Lotus DominoT and Novell GroupWise and works with existing enterprise systems to enable secure, push-based wireless access to email and other corporate data. For individuals and smaller businesses, BlackBerry Internet ServiceT allows users to access up to ten corporate and/or personal email accounts (including Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Domino and most popular ISP email accounts) from a single device. The BlackBerry 8700g will be available at all Maxis Centers nationwide. The device has a retail price of RM 2,400.

Nokia introduced the latest 3G-enabled device in its portfolio – the Nokia 6280 – which incorporates a wide range of features in one sleek package. The sexy slide design reveals a range of exciting features including a 2-megapixel camera that allows users to capture life as it happens and its 3G capabilities let users enjoy fast downloads of rich media at dizzying speeds. “The Nokia 6280 is another example of Nokia’s commitment to offer consumers an easy-to-use mobile phone with a desirable design,” said Barry Lee, Managing Director of Nokia Malaysia. “Nokia strives to deliver a handset that must be easy to use in order to bring tangible benefits to consumers. Simplicity is the key for technology to enrich peoples’ lives,” Lee added. The compact Nokia 6280 3G slide phone (WCDMA 2100 and GSM 900/1800/1900) comes with a range of features that enable consumers to take full advantage of 3G multimedia opportunities. Equipped with both a 2-megapixel and a VGA camera, the compact Nokia 6280 provides an ideal platform for 3G services such as real time video sharing and two way video calls. Taking personalization a step further, the Nokia 6280 can announce incoming calls with video ring tones. The Nokia 6280 is retailing for the recommended price of RM1799. The bright QVGA, 262,144 colour display (320x240 pixels) of the Nokia 6280 highlights the phone’s excellent photography capabilities. With dedicated camera and zoom buttons, the Nokia 6280 creates a natural, user-friendly conventional camera experience by operating the photography function in a horizontal landscape mode. Photos and videos taken with the Nokia 6280 can be viewed directly on the screen and then shared with others via MMS, email or directly printed to compatible printers. Pictures and videos can be conveniently stored on the Nokia 6280’s miniSD memory card. Bluetooth wireless technology provides easy linkage to printers, PCs and Nokia enhancements.

Motorola launched a unique campaign “HelloMoto Tour” to reach out to the emerging areas through its “Connect the unconnected” programme.

The HelloMoto Tour takes roadshow to the extreme with a MotoBus, the Motorola Bus that will travel across states in Malaysia. With vivid colours and smashing visuals, the bus is expected to capture onlookers’ curiosity as it traverses byways and highways and draw in crowds wherever it stops.

The roadshow will cover the whole of Malaysia covering sub-urban and rural towns of Northern, Southern and Central regions and the East Coast states (Pahang, Terengganu and Kelantan) as well as Sabah and Sarawak.

Eric Chong, Country Manager, Malaysia and Brunei, Mobile Devices, Motorola said, “The HelloMoto Tour is in line with Motorola’s “Connect the unconnected” programme that is part of Motorola’s partnership with the GSM Association. We aim to reach out to as many people in the rural areas as possible and bring technology to the ‘less connected’ areas.”

“The tour will also promote the use of mobile phones and showcase how mobile technologies can bring major social and economic benefits to people who have never before had access to information and communication technologies,” he said.

Chong added that the MotoBus would also act as their brand ambassador while the campaign would help to push and promote Motorola in rural areas.

“It will improve Motorola’s brand equity and drive sales by engaging with new consumers in a unique and locally relevant way,” Chong said.

Accompanying the MotoBus will be a MotoTruck and two MotoMpvs. The MotoVehicles will function as a complete sales service kiosk offering ring tones and wallpaper downloads including a variety of fun-filled entertainment and activities to entertain consumers at visiting towns, as part of the programme outreach.

Consumers will be able to view, feel and experience the latest range of high end and affordable Motorola products on the MotoBus especially the C-series products such as C113, C261 and C168 phones, among others.

Those who participate at any of the HelloMoto Tour roadshow will also stand a chance to win attractive prizes.

Siemens Communications today announced the market launch of its Multi-Standard Base Station (MBS), a system that enables mobile operators to accommodate radio elements for GSM and 3G/W-CDMA networks on a single modular platform. As a result, operators can offer services for both wireless standards using just one system. The new Multi-Standard Base Station can be used to expand operators’ already installed GSM base stations for mobile networks to support the 3G/W-CDMA standard at minimal cost and effort. The solution is based on Siemens’ Node B family concept. The GSM base stations are upgraded to W-CDMA by adding a small slide-in Radio Server Unit (RSU) in the existing rack. The RSU easily fits into standard 19-inch GSM BTSs. It is used in combination with the Remote Radio Head (RRH) from Siemens, which can be mounted easily on a roof or tower. “Whether operators deploy 3G/W-CDMA services now or in the future, the Multi-Standard Base Station system will help them build their network in a cost-effective way,” said Christoph Caselitz, head of Mobile Networks at Siemens Communications.

Expanding on the Follow Me TV experience of room-to-room media sharing, Motorola will demonstrate a new technology that can move recorded shows from a Motorola digital video recorder (DVR) set-top directly to a Motorola mobile device like the next-generation RAZR V3x. This new ability to move content can expand Motorola’s existing whole-home video platform to meet the video needs of consumers anywhere and everywhere. The explosion of digital video technologies in recent years is leading the demand for ever-greater control over TV at home and on the go. Starting with a Motorola set-top, consumers can now create a multimedia network that sends content not only to other rooms in the home, but to mobile devices with storage-card capacity. In addition, Motorola mobile devices can be used to program a Motorola DVR remotely. No more worries about forgetting to record your favourite show – control your television wherever you are! “By combining the reliability and clarity of Motorola video products with the style of Motorola cell phones, we can deliver a truly personalized television experience,” said John Burke, corporate vice president and general manager of digital video solutions at Motorola. “Consumers get the chance to enjoy seamless, mobile entertainment, and service providers get the opportunity to extend their reach beyond the home.” The full Follow Me TV experience is enabled by Motorola DVR set-tops and the company’s OCAP software solution. This software solution includes powerful tools designed to offer home media networking using the Multimedia over Cable Alliance (MoCA) standard.

For the first time, soccer fans worldwide will be able to access real-time match information, schedules, scores and up-to-the-second commentary on the world’s largest tournament on their mobile phones through a relationship between Everypoint and Yahoo!

Under the agreement, Everypoint, developer of a new class of mobile applications for the world’s premier content providers, will work with Yahoo! to create Yahoo!’s Mobile MatchCastTM client application for the soccer tournament, beginning in June in Germany. The application will be available for download on the official tournament web site.

“This clearly demonstrates the power of our advanced technology and its unique ability to enable the world’s leading publishers to deliver mobile applications that generate new revenue streams and strengthen brand loyalty,” said Everypoint CEO Evan Schumacher. “We are breaking new ground by enabling sports enthusiasts around the world to enjoy a true play-by-play soccer experience on their mobile phone from wherever they are.”

“Nothing can beat experiencing every exciting moment of all the big matches as they unfold in real-time. We are excited to deliver real-time mobile applications with crisp graphics directly to fans’ mobile phones,” said Christian Lindholm, Vice President, Global Mobile Products, Yahoo!

The Yahoo! Mobile MatchcastTM is a downloadable application that will run on virtually every new Java handset. The application will include a graphically rich, easy-to-use interface combined with detailed tournament information. Users will be able to access match information and previews, schedules, team information, stats, tournament news, scores and photos - all in real-time.

Everypoint allows carriers and content providers to maintain valuable, ongoing relationships with millions of consumers by delivering fresh, ‘always on’ content with superior graphics to their mobile phones. The company’s patent-pending technology overcomes key barriers inherent in other mobile applications - such as low-resolution graphics, slow ‘click-and-wait’ response and limited functionality.

Consumers download Everypoint applications directly onto their mobile phones, and content is pushed to them on a continuous basis via the company’s powerful content delivery engine. Everypoint’s proprietary Rapid Application Development (RAD) process accelerates development cycles and ensures applications are scalable, allowing for new features and functions to be added “on the fly” and lowering operating costs for content providers, and, ultimately, consumers. Superior graphics capabilities, and a proprietary vector graphics engine ensure content is delivered with crisp, vivid images unmatched in the mobile market.

From the discovery of new trends and whole phone communities to the evolution of e-novels and the instant postcard, Motorola’s global survey of 3G users explores the human side of next-generation mobiles. The Generation HERE report published today reveals that the take-up of the latest super-handsets and services is not only growing, but is also fundamentally changing the way in which users live and communicate. Dozens of writers and journalists travelled the world to interview and observe 3G users in different cultures for Generation HERE. This methodology, Motorola says, led to a report that had a qualitative rather than quantitative approach to give a fuller picture of the 3G world. “This was a report about nuances,” explains its editor Peter Lyle. “Behaviour and adaptation, creative and unexpected usage. Ultimately it isn’t difficult to get statistics about penetration, but those statistics, although they still have relevance, do not tell the whole story of how a new technology impacts upon people’s lives.” Generation HERE uncovered a surprising 3G age range among users. While it is typical to see teenagers using their mobiles to access community services like Japan’s Mixi and Sweden’s LunarStorm, the report’s research team also spoke to Japanese grandparents who keep two 3G phones – one for themselves, and the other for recording and sharing pictures and videos of their grandchildren. “Generation HERE is an exercise in gathering stories and recognising patterns,” says Douglas Hunter, consumer insights manager, Motorola Mobile Devices Europe. “We conceived it as a snapshot of how people are responding to 3G here and now, and of how they see its future. And there’s surprisingly little material out there that approaches the technology – any technology, in fact – in that way. So in a way we’ve learnt as much from it as anyone else.” Motorola’s complete Generation HERE report is available at www.whatisrazrspeed.com

Today Robbie Williams and T-Mobile in association with Sony Ericsson unveil the Robbie Williams Edition of the Sony Ericsson W300 Walkman phone, which will be in stores in time for the upcoming European Tour kick-off in June. Creatively influenced by Robbie Williams himself, the exclusive edition phone will offer a live recording of the opening song, a live video clip and six wallpapers including shots from the first show of the World Tour, which kicks-off today in Durban, South Africa. The Robbie Williams Edition clamshell style phone, exclusive to T-Mobile, will have an embossed Robbie Williams logo on the back cover and will enable custom

ers to identify themselves as ultimate Robbie Williams fans.

A must-have item for all fans and music lovers, the phone will come with two exchangeable ‘skins’ featuring special Robbie Williams designs so they can personalize their own handset. Fans will have direct access to the WAP site of RobbieWilliams.com on their phone and will see a Robbie Williams video clip when they start and shut down the handset. The Special Edition W300 will be available in all of T-Mobile European markets in June. “Working with T Mobile is a great way to get my music and videos out there and the Walkman phone is our latest collaboration, it's great,” said Robbie Williams. Never before has a global artist been involved with the design of a phone that includes pre-installed unreleased ‘live’ mobile music material. With the launch of the exclusive Robbie Williams phone, fans will have a backstage experience of the World Tour - seeing and hearing the ‘live’ content, which they can use to personalize and their phone and show friends just as the European Tour begins in June. The offering is yet another innovative and unique component to the partnership between Robbie Williams and T-Mobile in association with Sony Ericsson. “Throughout our long-term partnership with Robbie Williams, T-Mobile continues to bring fans closer to their favourite popstar in ways like never before,” said Ulli Gritzuhn, Chief Mar

keting Officer, T-Mobile International. “With the special edition W300, we are once again providing fans with a chance to personalize their mobiles with exclusive ‘live’ mobile music content, a never before seen video clip and photos all on one device that was creatively influenced by him. Now true Robbie Williams fans can be identified by not only by his music content found inside their phones but also on the outside with his special signature handset they will use to enjoy it.”

The exclusive Robbie Williams edition of the Sony Ericsson W300 is a true music phone from their series of Walkman phones launched in the past year. The W300 is a quad band MP3 player with storage for about 70 songs and offers up to 30 hours of music listening. Supplied Disc2 phone software enables users to easily transfer their favourite CDs to the phone. Complete with 4x digital zoom camera and built-in FM radio, the W300 is equipped with EDGE technology for quick data transfers and Internet access. Fans can easily launch RobbieWilliams.com from a dedicated icon on the device desktop. In addition, the signature phone will feature a standard Robbie Williams ringtone and a live Robbie Williams sound-byte for the SMS tone.

"The special edition W300 will provide fans with a unique memento of the tour," said Jan Wäreby, Corporate Executive Vice President, Head of Sales & Marketing, Sony Ericsson. "This level of personalization is a first for Sony Ericsson and we are delighted to not only be a tour sponsor but to be able to bring to T-Mobile this very individual phone with designs influenced by Robbie himself."

In July 2005, Robbie Williams and T-Mobile announced an 18-month partnership in association with Sony Ericsson. This ground-breaking partnership has enabled fans across Europe to enjoy unique access to their favourite artist with pre-released mobile music content from his new album ‘Intensive Care’, video-live streaming and cinecasts of his Berlin concert in October and other activities. As international head sponsor and lead brand for all of Robbie Williams’ activities until December 2006, T-Mobile will be providing fans with innovative offerings and close access during his upcoming European Tour, which kicks-off in Dublin on June 9th.

Kingston Technology Company has introduced the Kingston DataTraveler Elite – Privacy Edition (DTE Privacy Edition), the world’s first USB Flash drive that secures 100% of data on-the-fly via 128-bit hardware-based AES encryption, ensuring fail-safe security best practices without IT intervention. Offering up to 4GB of secure storage, DTE Privacy Edition is a plug-and-play USB device specifically targeted to meet enterprise-level security and compliance requirements. If the drive is ever lost or stolen, data on the DTE Privacy Edition device remains secure. In addition to hardware-based encryption, the drive features several other advanced security measures, including a complex password protocol and a mechanism that locks out would-be attackers after 25 consecutive failed password attempts, ensuring information is accessible only by authorized users, and thwarting even “brute force attack” attempts to access data on lost or stolen devices. Thanks to their large capacity, portability and simplicity, USB storage devices have become extremely popular among computer users, and have quickly made their way into the enterprise. However organizations have been challenged in preventing the transfer or loss of corporate data contained on these devices. “Securing mobile data is one of the key challenges IT professionals face today,” said Dave Lee, Digital Media Product Manager, APAC Business Division, Kingston. “Many organizations have hundreds of megabytes of critical information stored on personal drives that are potentially at risk to loss or theft. With DTE Privacy Edition, enterprises can support their increasingly mobile workforces with an enterprise-grade storage solution, and have peace of mind that sensitive information is secure.” The DTE Privacy Edition drive addresses a major issue companies face today -- enforcement of security policy. While it’s relatively easy to establish security best practices and policies, the challenge is getting employees to comply. Even one renegade (or lazy) employee presents a compliance risk. If you have no way of enforcing security compliance, then your enterprise data is compromised. The DTE Privacy Edition removes the onus on employees to take steps to secure data; the drive automatically encrypts data, ensuring best practice, fail-safe security. The drive is designed to deliver a smooth streamlined end-user experience. When authorized users access the encrypted files, they are able to view the data without the need for additional software. Additionally, DTEP Privacy Edition drives are operable from any computer, and do not require admin rights. Required by many software programs and a sore spot for many IT administrators, admin rights refer to membership in the local Administrators group, which must be granted and set up by the IT administrator. DTE Privacy Edition is available now through distributors or retailers. The DTE Privacy Edition runs on Windows 2000 SP4 or higher, and Windows XP operating systems.

Features/Specifications:

Capacities - 256 MB, 512 MB, 1 GB, 2 GB, 4 GB

Dimensions - 2.67” x 0.829” x 0.355” (67.7mm x 20.8mm x 9.0mm)

Operating Temperature - 32º F to 140º F (0º C to 60º C)

Storage Temperature - -4º F to 185º F (-20º C to 85º C)

Fast - data transfer rates of up to 24 MB/sec. read and up to 14 MB/sec write

Convenient - pocket-sized for easy transportability

Easy - plug and play into any USB port

Guarantee - five-year warranty

Customizable - co-logo program available

Data Retention - up to 10 years

Hotlink is putting on the biggest Indonesian music show ever held in Kuala Lumpur on 15th April 2006 at Stadium Merdeka. Hotlink’s Pesta Malam Indonesia features eight of Indonesia’s top selling bands, including Dewa 19, Gigi, Padi, Ratu, Ari Lasso, Ada Band, Cokelat and Ungu, performing 8 straight hours. Of late, Hotlink’s offering of international superstars LIVE in concert, featuring the most-in-demand artistes, reads like the who’s who in the music world. In addition, this entertainment diversity and versatility are reflected in its Music Zone, Asia’s first intelligent and personalised music portal. “This year, Hotlink is intensifying its commitment to its entertainment proposition with back to back LIVE concerts and enhanced mobile entertainment content for mobile phones. As such, we have in the pipeline, a continuous exciting line-up of international artistes to give our customers an experience unlike any other when it comes to entertainment, be it LIVE or on their mobile phones. “For the complete entertainment experience Hotlink also offers a revitalised Hotlink Music Zone with some 32,000 full songs downloads, amongst others. Entertainment reaches out to people from all walks of life and Hotlink’s aim is to provide the best mobile music downloads to all our customers,” said Maxis Senior Manager of Prepaid Marketing, Mr. Lai Shu Wei. Hotlink’s concert line-up this year includes American rock/rap group Fort Minor, led by Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda, and Hong Kong canto pop icons, Leo Ku and Miriam Yeung. Hotlink’s next staging after Pesta Malam Indonesia will be the Hotlink Quicksilver Revolutionary Tour featuring American band, Click 5, on 22 April 2006. Followed by acclaimed Cantonese pop stars, David Toa in concert on 7 May 2006 and Eason Chan performing on 26 August 2006. As with all Hotlink’s concerts, customers will be able to download songs from the bands leading up to the concert. Other products available include true tunes, full songs, wallpapers, polyphonic ringtones, mobile karaoke, background music, and artist news and gossip. 3G users can access exclusive video streaming. Hotlink has also scheduled for several meet and greet sessions with the bands in select cities between 6pm to 7pm on 13th April 2006. Venues include Maxis Centre KLCC, Plaza Alam Sentral in Shah Alam, and Terminal 1 in Seremban. To enable its customers to enjoy the much-anticipated concert, Hotlink Club members are entitled to up to 25% off ticket prices when they purchase RM30 top-up voucher. Public tickets to the concert are priced at RM50, RM60 and RM80 plus RM2 handling fee. Tickets are available from Maxis Centres in the Klang Valley, Hotlink Roadshows at Kompleks Bukit Jambul, Pulau Pinang, The Store, Ipoh, Terminal Bas Larkin, Johor, Ampang Point Shopping Centre, Kuala Lumpur, all Tower Records and Music Valley stores.

Celcom 3G subscribers will be able to catch the 13th Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM) award show on their phones on April 29 for just 50sen. The annual award show is considered to be the Malaysian equivalent of the Grammys. "The two-hour plus award show will be streamed live. This is targeted at AIM's diehard fans who may be mobile at the time. They can watch the whole show at that very special price," said Celcom corporate communications vice-president Norliza Kamaruddin. "This is to help support the music industry. AIM is one of the highest viewed award shows on TV," she said. AIM's organisers claim that last year's broadcast on ntv7 was viewed by four million Malaysians. Celcom does not have a target for this exercise but said that it has 52,000 3G subscribers. It hopes to make this an annual affair and would look at including some backstage content to add value to its broadcast. Akademi Industri Muzik Malaysia (AIMM) chairman Aziz Bakar said, "3G is what the younger generation like because it's in and goes with their mobile lifestyle." AIM will be broadcast live on ntv7.

Two leading French brand names, telecommunications giant Alcatel and fashion label Elle, have come together to launch the first fashionable lifestyle mobile phone in Malaysia and Asia-Pacific.

Alcatel marketing director for the Asia Pacific region, Gregory Fermanian, said both companies planned to launch more innovative products in Malaysia, which he considered as a mature market.

“The partnership with Elle is the first of our trendy line of phones to hit this market,” he said during the recent product launch.

The new phone, which incorporates stylish features, such as a make-up mirror for women, has been made available locally from end-March.

Fermanian said the phone was a hit in Europe since its launch last year, and would be introduced next in Thailand after its inaugural Asia-Pacific debut in Malaysia.

Called the Elle No 1 Glam-Phone, the mobile phone caters to needs of career-minded women, according to Alcatel and Elle.

Retailing at RM799 for mobile phone subscribers and RM699 for Maxis members, the phone is powered by Maxis Hotlink and available through its agents and outlets.

“Alcatel envisages that the mobile phone market in Malaysia is now ready for a different appeal that targets the fashion industry,” Fermanian said.

“We will be looking at the response to this product for the possibility of further launches with products of a fashionable outlook,” he added. – Bernama

IT lost out in the recent third-generation (3G) spectrum licence battle and has seen its share price succumb to weak sentiment on concerns over heightening competition in the domestic telecommunication industry.

Small wonder then that DiGi.com Bhd last week saw fit to reinforce the case for the investment community to hold on to its shares.

It did this with a surprise announcement of a second capital repayment of 60 sen per share, even before its first capital repayment of 75 sen per share is completed. The first exercise was proposed last October.

The news produced the desired effect as evidenced by DiGi's share price performance the following day, and the slew of analysts' reports that followed, many of them containing earnings and rating upgrades.

Several analysts have noted that the mobile operator is increasingly turning into a yield play, a point that has gathered strength following the management's assurance last week that the company's dividend policy involving a payout of more than 50% of net profit remains intact despite making over RM1bil in capital repayments.

As pointed out by Hwang-DBS Vickers Research, the telecommunication company (telco) is still in a mild net cash position.

In addition to the RM700mil unused commercial papers and medium-term notes facility it has on standby to finance its capital exercises, DiGi is expected to generate in the region of RM1.5bil in operating cashflow.

This would bring its sources of funds to about RM2.2bil.

The house says this should be sufficient to finance the company's capital expenditure (capex) requirement of about RM800mil and RM1bil in capital repayment as well as a maiden dividend later in the current financial year (FY).

“DiGi is expected to make an interim dividend in the second half of the year. We expect a gross dividend of 52.1 sen for FY06,” Hwang-DBS Vickers says.

The analyst says it is rare for a company in a capital-intensive business to be in a net cash position. “As such, we feel DiGi still has the capacity to issue bigger dividends”.

A foregin brokerage reckons that after 2006, DiGi will be very similar to Singapore's MobileOne Ltd, which is experiencing slow growth but has lots of cash for dividends.

This is because, unlike its rivals, it has the benefit of leaving investments in other regional markets to its parent Telenor ASA.

A Stronger 2006

Upon completion of the two capital repayment exercises, DiGi’s paid-up capital will be reduced from RM750mil to RM75mil.

Its shareholders’ fund would be lowered from RM2.25bil to RM1.24bil, and its net tangible asset per share reduced from RM3.00 per share (RM1.00 par) to RM1.65 per share (10 sen par).

The reduction in its shareholders’ funds will raise DiGi’s gross gearing (based on borrowings of RM300mil) to 0.24 times from 0.13 times after the capital repayments.

But the exercises will have a positive effect on the company’s return on equity, which will be boosted to about 38% from 21% in FY05.

It helps that the management has guided that net profit in the current financial year ending December 2006 is likely to be firmer and its capital expenditure lower now that the mobile operator does not have to proceed with a 3G rollout.

In a conference call with analysts, the management said it expected revenue to experience mid-teen growth, compared with its earlier guidance of 10%-15% growth.

This is expected to translate into a net profit growth of at least 20%, against earlier expectations of increases in the mid-teens.

Still, DiGi's EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) margin for the full-year is expected to be softer.

A few have taken this is an indication that DiGi's operating environment is set to get tougher still. But others, clearly more sanguine, say the mobile operator still has at least a year to go before it has to worry about real competition arising from the country's four 3G players.

DiGi lost out to MiTV Corp Sdn Bhd and TT dotCom Sdn Bhd, a unit of Time dotCom Bhd, in the latest 3G beauty contest. The two will join incumbents Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) and Maxis Communications Bhd in the domestic 3G arena.

Alternatives to 3G

Right now, lack of content and expensive handheld devices are putting the lid on demand. DiGi nevertheless is already on the look out for alternative technologies to 3G.

Says AmResearch, “Where we had raised the discount applied from 20% to 30% to reflect the negative outcome of the 3G bid, the sharp discount is no longer necessary as we believe DiGi would be able to deploy alternative technologies that would enable it to remain competitive in the provision of mobile broadband service,” it says.

According to Hwang-DBS Vickers, one of the options open to DiGi is the second-generation Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE) technology that can potentially offer twice the bandwidth of its current EDGE technology.

“As the existing EDGE technology is comparable to 3G in terms of actual speed experienced by users, we are hopeful that the EDGE2 technology will help DiGi retain its competitiveness,” the research house says.

Also, the existing 3G technology can be deployed on 1800MHz, which is the spectrum that the telco is currently using to offer its GSM services.

The question is whether the Government would allow DiGi to offer 3G services using its 1800MHz spectrum.

At any rate, AmResearch says the latest news of another capital repayment would see positive reactions from investors.

It notes that the revisions in DiGi's profit and capex have increased its discounted cash flow valuation from RM11.37 per share to RM12.06.

By applying a smaller discount of 10% to its discounted cashflow valuation, the house has a revised target price of RM10.86 on the stock, and has upgraded its call to buy.

Even from a valuation standpoint, some seem to think that the investment case for DiGi remains compelling given that it is the cheapest telco in the country currently.

Its shares trade at about 12 times (x) and 11x FY06 and FY07 earnings, respectively.

Hwang-DBS Vickers also makes a note of the point that in addition to DiGi's 15.3% net yield from the RM1.35 capital repayment (in total), its 6% regular gross yield is comparable to Maxis' 6.4% and higher than TM’s 4.4%. -the Star

Malaysia's latest local flick, Gubra embodies what DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd is all about, said head of segment marketing Yohani Yusof.

“The movie celebrates Malaysia's cultural differences, and as a local company, this is what we uphold,” she told StarBiz. Yohani said mobile communications was a lifestyle and that the company associated lifestyle with a product when it embarked on sponsorship.

DiGi, the main sponsor of Gubra, views the cinema as a channel to showcase the company's overall values and services. Yohani said consumers had become more demanding, hence it was essential for the company to market itself in a relevant way.

She said DiGi had sponsored three to four movies in the past and that each project would take up to eight months to prepare.

Yohani Yusof

“We have to ensure that whatever we associate our brand with is going to appeal to the masses,” she said, adding that it was essential for the marketing team to “keep their ears to the ground” for popular events that DiGi could associate itself with.

Although Gubra is said to appeal to the Malay community, Yohani believes the movie will catch the attention of all Malaysians because of its urban centric content.

She said the company had allocated 11,000 free tickets to be given out randomly to subscribers based on their tenure with the company.

However, Yohani declined to reveal how much the sponsorship was worth, but said the movie was expected to boost sales and make the company “more attractive'' to consumers.

“The challenge for us is to become even more creative in reaching out to consumers,” she added.

As at the first quarter, the company had a customer base of 4.8 million subscribers. -thestar

The country’s three mobile phone service providers and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) are in talks aimed at enabling prepaid users to register via SMS and the Internet.

DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd chief marketing officer Chee Pok Jin said the four parites were combing through the details of offering the option to prepaid users.

Speaking to reporters at the launch of two new services for its prepaid customers in Kuala Lumpur on April 12, Chee said it was DiGi’s intention to provide its customers the option of registering via SMS or online in the near future.

Currently, its prepaid customers can only register at DiGi Centres and DiGi’s authorised dealers. Since Jan 1, 2006, all mobile prepaid users are required by the MCMC to register by year-end.

As of December 2005, there were 16.62 million prepaid users representing 85.2% of all mobile users, with 4.4 million users subscribing to DiGi.

Chee also said DiGi had invested RM2 million to offer two new services, “Talktime Extend” and “Talktime Advance,” on its command-based *128# info access for its prepaid customers in a bid to retain and attract more prepaid customers.

With Talktime Extend, prepaid users with low usage patterns will be allowed to exchange credit for a longer airtime validity period.

“Instead of building a stockpile of idle credit, customers will be able to maximise their spending; why reload when you can’t even exhaust your credit?” Chee said.

Chee said Talktime Extend would be available on a promotional basis for two months and is applicable to users with at least RM95 of credit, who would have to exchange RM35 of credit for 30 days' validity.

He said Talktime Advance was designed for users with high usage and constantly running out of airtime credit.

With this service, customers with a credit balance of between RM2 and 10 sen can request for an advance of RM3 in credit and two-day validity, which will later be deducted when they perform a reload.

It is available to those who have been using DiGi's prepaid service for at least six months.- theedgedaily

Mobile service provider, DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd is confident of getting its current 4.4 million prepaid mobile phone users to register by end of this year, said its chief marketing officer, Chee Pok Jin. The company and other telcos (Maxis and Celcom) are working with the government to send out short message services (SMS) for the registration purpose, he told reporters after the launch of two new DiGi services, Talktime Advance and Talktime Extend, here, today. At the moment, prepaid mobile phone users can get their lines registered through telco centres and dealer shops by providing information such as identity card number and name, he said. Recently, Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik announced that prepaid mobile phone users would be given until end of this year to register, failing which they will face the termination of their phone lines. He had said that only 1.2 million of the total 14 million prepaid users in the country had registered their lines. The move to register prepaid mobile users followed incidents of abusive and threatening messages sent by users of prepaid services. Chee said his company has invested RM1 million for the development of its two new services, Talktime Advance and Talktime Extend, and that it will be spending another RM1 million on advertising and promotions. -- BERNAMA

DiGi.Com Bhd has been given a buy recommendation with target price of RM11.50 by Citigroup Investment Research given that the company is the research house's preferred Malaysian telco stock and a top pick in the regional telecom space.

"We forecast 15% earnings CAGR (compound annual growth rate) in 2005 to 2008E (estimates), as operating leverage boosted profitability and competition remained intense but rational.

"Special dividends could supplement the regular dividend payout, which is amply supported by the balance sheet," Citigroup Research said. DiGi closed at RM9.45 on April 7.

Longer term, it sees upside risk to margins and scale economies should drive these lower.

"Underpinning this is our view the competition will stay rational with Maxis (Communications Bhd and Telekom Malaysia (TM) adopting a live-and-let-live approach to the local market as they execute their regional expansion strategies," it added.

Citigroup Research said at a 2006E price earnings of 12.2 times, DiGi is still in the money on RM1.35 of capital reduction and traded at discounts of 25% of TM and 11% to Maxis, as well as 15% to the market.

"We believe the discounts will narrow, given DiGi's robust growth outlook and a healthy dividend yield offering upside risk," said the research house.

However, it said DiGi's failure to secure a third generation (3G) licence left it at a competitive disadvantage in the longer term.

"DiGi may have to acquire one of the new 3G licencees or consider next-generation alternatives.

"While we recognise this risk, we think it will be 12 to18 months before 3G becomes a key differentiating factor.

Additionally, major shareholder Telenor ASA needs to reduce its stake to 49% after Dec 31, 2006 to meet the foreign ownership limit," it said.

Citigroup Research said there were three choices for Telenor to eliminate a share overhang. It said Telenor could seek another extension, explore options to retain control or place out shares to the market.-theedgedaily

This is taken at KLCC today. The Maxis Germany 2006 roadshow(I guess its a roadshow). There are fun games, and olso merchandise to be grab...

NasionCom Holdings Bhd is finalising a deal with state-owned China Satellite Communications Corporation (China Satcom) to offer Voice Over the Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony services in the huge China market.

Sources said NasionCom�s joint venture with the China telecommunications operator in the VoIP business could cover four major provinces � Shangxi, Shanghai, Beijing and Guangdong. China Satcom is one of China�s six telcos. The sources said these four provinces account for about half of China�s 130 million broadband subscribers. The four provinces have a population size of 300 million.

A source said NasionCom may take up a majority stake in the joint-venture vehicle, which could roll out the value-added VoIP services as soon as the middle of the year.

When contacted, NasionCom executive director Peter Tham told FinancialDaily that the company was looking at potential overseas ventures but declined to comment further.

A source said the deal would mark the broadband telephony services and discounted calls provider�s foray into the overseas markets.

�If successful, this will be a small step towards making a quantum leap in its VoIP business,� a source said. It is learnt that NasionCom will be making an initial investment of RM10 million under the first phase to roll out VoIP services in Shangxi.

China Satcom found NasionCom to be a small and nimble, pro-business VoIP player,� the source said.

Under the management of the Ministry of Information Industry, China Satcom is one of the six basic telecommunications operators in that country. Its main services include satellite- special services in communications, broadcast, satellite mobile communications services, Internet services and VSAT services; 3.5G WLAN services; and audio, data and multimedia services based on satellite transmission technology.-theedgedaily