In spite of the financial turmoil, the production value of Taiwan's communications industry still reached NTD 784.4 billion in 2008. According to the survey done by the Institute for Information Industry (III), the worldwide communications market may rise against the downturn by 10% this year, and the production value of Taiwan's communications industry will grow to NTD 1.5~2 trillion in the next 5 years. Providing quality, cost-effective design and contract manufacturing services for brand companies and consumers all over the world, Taiwanese makers play an important role in driving the new trends of broadband communications and mobile Internet. These include various product areas, such as Cable CPE, DSL CPE, WLAN NIC, VoIP Router, IP Phone, IP STB, Femtocell AP, WLAN AP, and Cable STB which already have strong global presences.

In order to demonstrate the strengths of Taiwan's communications industry to international buyers, Broadband Taiwan 2009 will be held from Oct. 26th to Oct. 28th under the advisory of the Bureau of Foreign Trade and Industrial Development Bureau, MOEA and the joint efforts of several local institutes, such as TAITRA (Taiwan External Trade Development Council), TEEMA (Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association), ITRI (Industrial Technology Research Institute), III (Institute for Information Industry), and TCA (Taipei Computer Association). Moreover, worldwide industrial groups, including WiMAX Forum, FTTH Council Asia Pacific, Wi-Fi Alliance, Bluetooth SIG, and IPTV Forum will be in attendance. Major key vendors, such as Intel, Alcatel-Lucent, Motorola, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Nokia Siemens Networks, Samsung, Alvarion, and Tebnovus, will all join in the grand event at TWTC Exhibition Hall 3. Participation by local makers, ZyXEL, TECOM, Gemtek, MSI and Mediatek completes the supply chain.

International Conferences Assemble

In addition to expanding the exhibition scale of Broadband Taiwan 2009, several important international conferences will be held concurrently. These include WiMAX Forum Member Conference Taipei, Taiwan, WiMAX Summit Taiwan 2009, Broadband Forum Taiwan 2009, and IPTV Develop Forum-IPTV on Net. In particular, WiMAX Forum will hold its Member Conference in Taipei again for the second consecutive year, showing Taiwan’s vital role in the global WiMAX market. It is expected that more than 600 foreign experts and buyers will participate in this conference. ITRI has also been working with WiMAX Forum to conduct the WiMAX Summit on Oct. 26th. There are many current, future and emerging players sending their executives to the conference. These include Clearwire of the U.S., UQ of Japan, Yota of Russia, P1 of Malaysia, BSNL of India, Embratel of Brazil, as well as many international WiMAX equipment vendors joining the summit. Taiwan will be represented by Chunghwa Telecom, Far Eastone Telecommunications, Tatung InfoComm, First International Telecom, Global Mobile, Vee Telecom Multimedia, and VMAX. Through these diverse exhibitions and conferences, local companies will be able to enhance their interactions with global telecom operators and gain further cooperation opportunities.

Two Focuses: Optical Internet, Broadband Wireless

The progress of communication technologies has radically changed our life styles. The demands of seamless networking applications have driven the convergence of wired and wireless broadband communication technologies and the explosive growth of added-value services like “Wireless Communication,” “Broadband Multimedia,” and “Digital Content.” Among them, optical Internet and mobile broadband are two hot spots. It is expected that worldwide fixed line broadband subscribers will exceed 460 million households in 2009. Because many governments are keen to construct broadband infrastructure, optical networks will become the mainstream of worldwide broadband access market in the future. As for mobile broadband, more than 70% of NBs and Netbooks will be embedded with 3G, 3.5G, or WiMAX modules in the next five years, as well as MP3s, gaming devices, and MIDs. Despite the financial crisis last year, the data revenues of major operators in Europe and the U.S. have still increased 40%. It fully shows the enthusiastic consumer demand for the mobile Internet.

In order to display the themes of technology convergence, two special sections are set at the Broadband Taiwan 2009. These are Broadband World and WiMAX Taipei where various components, broadband equipment, communications software, mobile satellite services, testing and certifications, and added-value services will be exhibited. Additionally, three pavilions, Broadband Communications, M-Taiwan, and WiMAX Forum, are organized to focus on the key trends of optical and mobile Internet. The rich content has made it a must-attend event for the industry. Together with the promotional support of more than 50 TAITRA overseas branches, it is expected to draw more than 40,000 international and domestic buyers to visit the show. Broadband Taiwan 2009 is the largest communication exhibition in Asia Pacific this year, and it is the industrial development benchmark for the next year. Don’t miss the grand event. For more information, please visit http://www.broadbandtaiwan.com.tw/.