Just before Computex 2013, Digitimes spoke with Jeff Baer, marketing director for Embedded Wireless, Wireless Connectivity Combo at Broadcom to find out more about Broadcom's push into the embedded space with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.Q: Lately there has been buzz about Broadcom levering its wireless technology in the embedded space, can you tell us about the progress Broadcom has made in this area?A: To start off, the Broadcom embedded business is kind of on the opposite end of the portfolio spectrum from our consumer business when it comes to technology and business model. In the consumer world, the focus of the business is on huge OEMs and huge ODMs, which work with a few well-defined applications. The embedded space that we are targeting, whether it is called Internet of Things (IoT) or machine to machine (M2M) communication, is more of a horizontal type of business, where all types of electronic devices will eventually be connected wirelessly.Q: How is Broadcom enabling customers?A: I represent a product family called WICED (Wireless Internet Connectivity for Embedded Devices). WICED (pronounced wicked) is a development system that vastly reduces the effort required to add wireless connectivity (mainly Wi-Fi and Bluetooth) to embedded devices. We launched the first WICED product about a year ago focusing on Wi-Fi and since then we have made more announcements, adding more legs on the WICED stool, so to speak. For example, we recently announced the availability of our Smart Development Kit with Bluetooth Smart system-on-a-chip (SoC), allowing for more development for battery-operated devices.We've continued building up the portfolio by adding the Broadcom 4390, which we've been talking about here at Computex. The 4390 is an SoC designed for 8 and 16 bit microcontroller systems. The 4390 basically delivers Wi-Fi connectivity to low-power and battery-powered devices. Initial applications that the BCM4390 will support include sports and fitness, health and wellness and security and automation. However, innovations based on the WICED platform can also help OEMs connect even the simplest appliances, including slow cookers, lights and more, with a single-chip. We've currently sampling the 4390 and we expect products based on the chip to hit the market by the end of the year.This is a crucial building block in the goal for end-to-end connectivity. Our vision is for everything to be wirelessly connected. We've seen this trend developing over some time and there is widespread belief that this going to happen. With the WICED architecture we are really enabling this with a couple of core pieces of technology that are derived from our industry leading Bluetooth and Wi-Fi products.Now, developers have a platform and the tools to implement Internet connectivity in a variety of devices, especially those without existing support for networking, like digital cameras, proximity tags and smart meters, etc.Q: What is driving this market?A: Historically, the wireless embedded market was more complex than it needed to be. It required some professional gateway or some expensive box to enable communication with a device. However, if you use Wi-Fi, you don't need some special hookup to connect. But ultimately the catalyst for this market and what is moving it forward is the growth of the smartphones and the tablet industry. All of these devices feature Wi-Fi. So now you have a device that is Wi-Fi enabled and that people are comfortable using. And pretty much everyone on the planet is carrying one of these devices around with them.Q: What do you mean by that?A: The console will be the smartphone. IoT allows the Internet to be gathered at all different sets of nodes and then kind of consolidated and moved to a common place either for analysis or action. For example, maybe you will have some sort of sensor in your shoe that tells you when have walked 10,000 steps or maybe you have some kind of heart monitor. The data gathered by these sensors can be transferred wirelessly to your smartphone and consolidated there. It can then be monitored or, more importantly, uploaded to the cloud - to some website where you can analyze it, and based on that analysis, take some action based on the events or simply keep track of the data on a day to day basis.Some of the usage models for these devices are kind of simple. A great example is some kind of medical equipment or pill dispenser. You can have that device enabled with wireless and basically you can monitor a person who is on medication but is living alone and report back on a daily basis with the data -when the medication has been taken or even if the patient is still alive with his or her vital signs being maintained in a predefined range. This saves the cost of having a nurse or medical practitioner from having to go out into the field and make a house call to check up on the patient, which is both expensive and not very scalable.Q: It is interesting that Broadcom is using Bluetooth and Wi-Fi for wireless communication in embedded devices. A lot of companies are using ZigBee?A: There are a multitude of different wireless protocols that are in a sense similar, but different. They all have strengths and weaknesses. ZigBee was one of the first wireless protocols in the embedded space. It went out there and got established a number of years ago and really targeted machine to machine or sensor type of applications at a time when there wasn't really any other technology that was being tailored for those types of applications. However, although it was out there first it really doesn't mean that it was the best technology over the long haul. In a couple of areas ZigBee has not stood the test of time. One major area is interoperability. The solutions that are out there are not particularly interoperable from solution to solution or from vendor to vendor.This is an area where both the Bluetooth SIG and the Wi-Fi alliance have done a really outstanding job of setting interoperability standards and enforcing those through really strict compatibility logo testing. So, if you have a Bluetooth device, you know it is going to be interoperable with all other Bluetooth devices. If you have a Wi-Fi device logo, you know the device is going to work with all your other Wi-Fi devices.The other issue with ZigBee is from a practical point of view. You can connect things but once they are connected, who do they talk to? The challenge is how do you get the data from the devices into a format that can be analyzed. For ZigBee you need some kind of specialized gateway or box and that box has to fit somewhere in your house or warehouse or factory. The fact is, this makes the entire system more complicated than it needs to be - people don't like to procure and support extra boxes.On the other hand, if these embedded devices are enabled with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, they can communicate directly with a smartphone. This goes back to what I was saying before, that the catalyst that has led to the explosion in this area is the smartphones and tablets that already have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. So if you have Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled devices, you can be confident that you can access them through your tablet or smartphone, or even your TV or PC. In this kind of usage model, you are much more likely to access and use that data, meaning it will add value to your life.Broadcom marketing director Jeff BaerPhoto: Company

Jason LS Chen is a vice president in the Sales and Marketing Group at Intel and is responsible for all sales and marketing activities for Intel in Taiwan. As country manager, he supports original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and original device manufacturers (ODMs) in Taiwan. He also manages domestic market sales and marketing operations in Taiwan, including Computex. As Taiwan site manager, he is responsible for coordinating operations in Intel's Taiwan office.Digitimes spoke with Chen just before Computex Taipei 2013 to get a glimpse into the trends that are shaping Intel in Taiwan, especially in the mobile market.Q: So you pretty much run all of Intel's interests here in Taiwan?A: Not all. There is a small exception. Two OEM customers, Acer and Asustek Computer, have dedicated teams managing them. APAC manages those customers, as the complexity of these customers is quite high.Q: Since you deal quite a bit with customers, you must get a lot of feedback. How does that feedback translate into making sure future products address customer concerns?A: This process is actually managed through different sections of the company. People in the US are responsible for product definitions and features. They talk to Taiwan regularly, and once or twice a year they come to Taiwan and talk directly to customers. Of course customers will also talk directly with me about products. I provide that feedback to the product groups through regular executive communication. There is engagement on all levels.Q: Over the past few years there has been a shift in the mobile space from traditional PC products to ultra-mobile products like smartphones and tablets, in particular over the past two years. Can you comment on the trends and how this is affecting Intel?A: This is definitely the trend we are seeing here in Taiwan. In the tablet space, initially it was Apple driving the market; however, recently we have been seeing steep growth in non-Apple tablets. For example, Asustek is playing an aggressive role promoting its tablets in the market and we are also working with some customers in the tablet space.What we are seeing in this market is that user experience is becoming more important than product features. End users are paying increasingly more attention to what kind of experience they can get from their devices.The effect on Intel is that the traditional messages you see in the PC space concerning speed and leading-edge hardware specs are not enough for this market. We also need to delve more into how end-products are being viewed and used by users.Q: There is also a big difference in how mobile devices are sold compared with traditional PCs. Can you comment on the different distribution methods and how you are adapting to best target the various channels?A: In the past, there was a distribution channel for PCs and there was a distribution channel for mobile handsets. They were very different channels and there was little overlap. For example, the handset area was hugely involved with telecoms and subsidized products, while the PC industry was a retail distribution play. Starting with feature phones, smartphones and now with tablets, the products started to converge and channel players tried to cross over from each channel, but for the most part, there hasn't been a lot of crossover success.The key right now is tablets, because it is the only type of product that still exists in a gray area. So both channels are laying claim to it.For Intel, we want to be involved in all types of products – handsets, tablets and PCs – so while we are continuing to work with the PC distribution channel, we need to be more involved in the telecom channel.Q: What steps are you taking to be more involved and successful in the telecom channel?A: There is no magic formula for that. The way we can succeed there is by getting as many design wins as possible. To do that, we have to continue improving our silicon and that has been an ongoing process. We will be one step closer with products that are coming out later this year based on our Silvermont platform.The other area we are paying closer attention to is operating systems for ultra-mobile devices, namely Android. In the phone space you have to really figure out how to run Android optimally on your devices. For that we are working very closely with Google, making sure that Intel silicon has the right support in the Android space and embracing the mobile device ecosystem a lot more than we did before.Q: There are a lot of rumors in the market now that Intel will be making some big breakthroughs in the tablet market. Can you comment on any of those rumors?A: Of course we can't talk about any specifics in that area because of customer confidentiality but we are working very hard in this area. Personally, I think the right expectation is that the market will see a lot more Intel-based tablets in the future.Q: Concerning operating systems and software in general, can you comment on how Intel is addressing the increased focus on user experience in the mobile device market?A: This is a very complicated topic and perhaps your readers should check in with Intel during Computex, because we will have a lot to say about this. But for now, I can briefly say that for Intel, user experience is not just software. It is really the combination of hardware and software.Take NFC (near field communications) for example, to have a successful solution you need hardware features enabled with software capabilities, and then an app that takes advantage of those features in a seamless way. It is only when all those things operate in unison with each other that the technology becomes meaningful to the user, and a lot of the technology needs to be invisible to the user. You really need to pay attention to usage models.One of the reasons Apple has been so successful with its mobile devices is the touch experience it delivers to end users, and that success involves a lot of hardware tuning. However, Apple is coming from a background where it was enabling smaller displays, and that goes for most players working with touch.However, we work with a broad swatch of solution providers targeting various markets, so it can't be one strategy to fit all. Just one or two years ago, there weren't that many 11-inch touch displays in the market. Moreover, the usage models, what types of features are most important, are different when comparing phone displays with tablets, and even more so when larger-sized displays, say for a 21-inch all-in-one (AIO) PC, are taken into consideration.To address the various usage models and market segments, Intel introduced our touch-capacitive program last year at Computex. We are working with a few touch panel leaders like TPK Holding and Wintek, with the purpose of enabling the touch industry in areas we feel are being ignored.If you look at the AIO PC market for example, there are solutions available using today's technology, such as one glass solution (OGS), but that would be a very expensive solution for a 21-inch panel. So, we are approaching areas such as this to see if other technologies, such as film-based touch and optical touch, can enable the market in terms of cost and user experience.Q: Will Intel move into complete systems to address these challenges?A: I am not aware of any complete devices that Intel will be doing.However, Intel does recognize that we need to improve on platform technology. For example, we have a lot of experience in horizontal businesses, like the industrial PC industry. But we are more of a relative newcomer to phone markets, where the involvement is much more vertical.To be more successful in this vertical space, we need to have a better understanding of the entire ecosystem. It is not only about focusing on supporting products through our silicon, we need to focus on the full system in order to enable partners throughout the supply chain.Q: What about support on the operating system side? How different is it for Intel to work with Android compared with Microsoft Windows?A: With Windows, Microsoft makes it easy to add hardware support. To support new devices, the vendors usually simply provide a driver. Microsoft provides the interface for incorporating the driver and the process of getting the device supported is relatively straightforward. With Android you have to integrate support for new devices at the operating system level. If you want to incorporate new sensors or memory for the touch-panels, it all has to be fitted into the operating system. And you have to do it by yourself. We are now doing a lot of in-house development to support our own Android capabilities. We provide customers with the full Android stack, so part of the enablement is us being very involved in the Android BSP (board support package).As I mentioned previously, we also have to figure out how to best support a broad set of customers who are targeting different product segments and thus have different requirements. Not everyone will be involved in the same ecosystem.Q: There are a lot of expectations that the upcoming Bay Trail SoC will help Intel better succeed with design wins for mobile handsets. Can you comment on the upcoming Atom (Silvermont) platform?A: Silvermont is a very important development for Intel. The architecture will be based on a 22nm manufacturing process, which means we will be manufacturing Atom (Silvermont) at the same process as our Core architecture. This is the first time Intel has placed our low-power process at the same cadence as the most advanced Intel processor technology.Our latest Core (Haswell) will be on the market soon and that will target productivity platforms where the main focus is performance, but for the ultra-mobile space, where very thin designs or very small form factors are key, Atom will be the choice.Q: Atom has always been priced to be very affordable. Will the significantly improved power consumption (and related battery life issues) and performance boost of migrating Silvermont to 22nm make Intel rethink pricing on the Atom platform?A: Pricing will not see a big change.Q: This should represent some interesting opportunities in the mobile space. Atom was the foundation of low-priced netbooks. With the advances in power and performance, do you foresee a revival of the netbook market?A: Netbooks didn't really go away. Our Classmate PC is still shipping in good quantities in the global education market. Convergence devices in the tablet and netbook market will also be adopted in the education market. We expect both types of products to run in parallel in this area.Q: In terms of convergence devices, tablets have mostly been used for consuming content, but some users want more PC-type features in their tablets. With Bay Trail targeted at handsets, but being able to support full PC performance, do you see even more opportunities for convergence devices; for example, a US$200 Android PC?A: US$200 price points are very realistic for these devices.In terms of convergence PC devices, there could be interest in tablets that support full USB I/O so that a keyboard can be attached. We have plans to support these types of device in the market very aggressively, no matter the OS. Obviously, if users are looking for a keyboard, they are looking for productivity and that means better performance than most current tablets offer. These new types of convergence devices could be based on Android but this is really new so we don't know for sure what will happen.Jason LS Chen is a vice president in the Sales and Marketing Group at Intel and is responsible for all sales and marketing activities for Intel in Taiwan.Photo: Company

Once chiefly known as an OEM for PC card readers and memory modules, Carry Technology has expanded its product portfolio to include Wi-Fi products and other peripherals for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. While continuing to maintain close relationships with its OEM clients, Carry Tech has also moved to expand its own-brand products, particularly in emerging markets.In an interview with Digitimes, Carry Tech president Taron Chang talked about the company's efforts to expand its own-brand business, which is now generating higher gross margins than its OEM business. Chang also shared his views about the prospects of the memory industry, as well as challenges and opportunities faced by the company.Q: At the end of 2011, Carry Tech launched its Apotop brand for storage solutions and peripherals targeted mainly at mobile devices. What progress has there been since the brand made its debut?A: At Computex 2012 we officially announced the Apotop brand. Products under the brand include not only the company's traditional areas of focus, such as card readers, DRAM modules, flash drives and SSD devices, but also innovative new products.Backed by our experienced R&D team, we introduced wireless storage devices designed specifically for popular iOS devices. In 2012, Carry Tech launched a travel Wi-Fi router enabling iPad users to set up their own Wi-Fi hotspots for use in places like hotels that only offered hard-wired access, and its second generation that includes a USB port and SD card slot for expanded memory - an all-in-one peripheral device to bring more convenience to popular tablet devices.This year, Carry Tech has enhanced its wireless storage devices by developing products targeted at not only iOS devices, but also devices running the Android OS platform. Designed for smartphones and tablets, our 2013 series can operate as a card reader, reading and sharing data much faster than the previous generation; as a connector, transferring files to devices from an SD card or USB drive; as a power bank, i.e. a portable battery charger; and as a wireless access point.With our expanded wireless storage products for popular mobile devices, the Apotop brand has gained wider recognition over the past year. You can find Carry Tech's Apotop products in all Apple outlets in Taiwan and around 200 others in Asia. We have also partnered with several airline companies to do inflight promotions for Apotop products.Though the value of sales generated from Carry Tech's own-brand products remains a lot smaller than its traditional OEM business, the former segment is generating higher gross margins than the latter. We expect the Apotop-brand products, particularly the wireless storage device series, to be the key growth driver for the company in 2013.Q: Carry Tech is a 21-year-old company that used to focus on the OEM business in the PC card reader and memory solution segments, with clients mostly from Europe, Japan and the US. What proportion of sales comes from your traditional business now?A: Currently, about 70% of Carry Tech's total revenues come from the OEM business. While exploring new growth opportunities, we continue to ensure a consistent supply to our contract customers. Carry Tech has steady income generated by its OEM business and production plants, where six SMT lines are installed.Q: Companies face certain issues when producing their own products both as an OEM supplier and also under their own brand. Does Carry Tech have similar issues?A: Our OEM and own-brand businesses are clearly distinguished. For the OEM business, we secure contracts from the world's major memory module vendors, which sell their solutions mostly in developed countries.Carry Tech's own-brand products are marketed chiefly through retail channels in emerging markets, such as Southeast Asia and the Middle East. But for Apotop-branded wireless storage devices, the product line represents our own innovation and does not overlap with our clients' products.Q: Which memory companies do you source chips from? Has Carry Tech been able to secure a steady supply from its chip partners in 2013?A: Carry Tech has maintained steady relationships with its existing suppliers, which provide timely delivery and quality products as promised. We need to ensure the reliability of our partners so that we meet our client's high standards.Carry Tech also takes appropriate measures to minimize the impact of supply-side constraints caused by uncontrollable events, such as power outages or severe weather conditions. In addition, we employ different procurement strategies for different markets so that the company is flexible in its operations to satisfy different market segments.Q: According to a new IHS iSuppli report, the adoption of SSDs in PCs will expand through 2017. What is Carry Tech's involvement in the field?A: Three years ago we expressed optimism about the PC SSD market, which, however, has thus far been a disappointment. But still, the market outlook is promising.SSDs will not be able to overtake hard disk drives as the major storage medium for PCs and notebooks in the short term, because prices for the former are still too high compared to those for the latter.Q: Some observers have noted that Thunderbolt is struggling to compete against USB 3.0 due to its high cost. What's your view on that?A: Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 interfaces both have their own strengths, therefore they target different tiers of the market.The transmission speed of Thunderbolt is twice as fast as USB 3.0, with the former technology allowing an entire HD movie to be transferred in 30 seconds. Therefore, developers specializing in Thunderbolt-compatible hardware demand high performance for multimedia and gaming, targeting the specific market tier that usually attracts gamers and PC graphics enthusiasts.USB 3.0 is considered a fast, user-friendly option. Hardware developers that favor USB 3.0 over Thunderbolt are generally more focused on user-friendly design in terms of price and functionality required.Carry Tech is proud to have been chosen by Intel as one of very few Thunderbolt partners in Taiwan to develop a variety of Thunderbolt-based storage products and media devices. We also have a lineup of USB 3.0 products for the mass market.Q: What is your outlook for the 2013 memory market?A: DRAM companies should find themselves in a more stable market. We see suppliers continue to scale down their output for the commodity memory sector, as demand shrinks due to weak PC sales. The market has now returned to a more balanced state, enabling price stability.I don't think that DRAM prices will see significant falls in 2013, unless some uncontrollable events happen.Carry Tech president Taron ChangPhoto: Jessie Shen, June 2013

With the motherboard industry reaching maturity and competition growing fierce, as the world's second ranked brand vendor, Gigabyte Technology has been aggressively trying to stay competitive in the market by coming up with new innovations to satisfy consumers.Digitimes recently had a chance to sit down with James Lo, director of Gigabyte's Motherboard Business Unit, Taiwan Sales Department and Service and Marketing Center; Raymond Tseng, vice president of Gigabyte's Motherboard Business Unit, Innovation & Creative Value Center; and Stewart Haston, marketing manager of Gigabyte's Motherboard Business Unit, to discuss the latest innovations the company is ready to display at Computex Taipei 2013, as well as its future outlook.Q: Where is Gigabyte's current position in the motherboard market? And what is the company's current status?Lo: In terms of sales, we are mainly focusing on the retail channel motherboard business and are currently the top-two vendor worldwide.Of current retail channel motherboard shipments, including those from brand motherboard vendors and regional brands, which are about 60-70 million units, Gigabyte and the number one vendor, Asustek Computer, together account for 40 million units, about two-thirds of the total volume, showing that we are one of the top-tier players in the industry, no matter whether you look at it in terms of volume, quality or revenues.Q: What new products or technologies will Gigabyte showcase at Computex 2013? What advantages do these products have that will allow them to outmatch their competitors?Lo: Basically, for this year, we have separated our motherboard product line into three major series: Ultra Durable, our conventional motherboard series for the mainstream market; OC, which has many unique functions designed specifically for the overclocking industry; and Gaming, a series that features the most advanced hardware and technologies to satisfy the demands of gamers.People used to use PCs only for work, but are now also using them for entertainment. Although some people are satisfied with standard specifications, there are always people hoping for better, and this has helped turn motherboards into premium products like smartphones, where there are a variety of choices from NT$5,000 (US$167) models to NT$20,000 models based on consumer needs. Gigabyte has become a well-known brand for supplying premium motherboard products.We have also become particular about our industrial design, especially our PCB coloring. In the old days, our motherboards were usually blue and black, but we are now making our motherboards and cooling components such as heat-sinks and heat-pipes in colors that are popular among gamers, such as green, orange and gray, to satisfy their desire to build PCs that will stand out at a LAN party or gaming tournament, as well as delivering the technical specifications expected of a performance PC.Haston: At the high-end level, it's not just about the hardware or specifications; it's about creating a brand, and most enthusiasts and DIY builders know that Gigabyte green is meant for gaming, while Gigabyte orange or black is meant for overclocking.We were the first vendor to launch an overclocking-specific motherboard and the move blew away overclockers and triggered many competitors to follow suit. So, the business is all about leadership, it's all about jumping in and doing things first.We have a competitor which only colors its products red for both the overclocking and the gaming segments, but for us, we see two different paths. Gaming is one specialized area and overclocking is another, and this strategy is how we differentiate ourselves in the high-end market.Tseng: Let me give a brief introduction to some new technologies we've put onto our motherboards. For the OC series, we soldered a couple of USB ports directly onto the motherboards, which is a feature optimized purely for overclockers.Meanwhile, we have also designed several features on our OC series motherboards to satisfy customers' need for fast, responsive Internet connections and better audio output, and some of these designs have also been adopted in our gaming and mainstream motherboards.Our strategy is aimed at satisfying customers from all different groups.We also designed a new BIOS, which took us one and a half years to complete, that changes its user interface color and adjustable options with the motherboard series being used, in order to give both visual and technical satisfaction to our customers.Q: What is onboard Amp-Up Audio technology? What factors did Gigabyte consider in deciding to push this technology?Tseng: Amp-Up Audio allows DIY users to replace the audio amplifier chip on their motherboard. By changing chips, the sound capabilities on their boards can be completely altered, allowing users to pick whichever they prefer.Haston: It's the DIY concept. The whole point of DIY is to allow users to try out different configurations, and so why not provide users the same option for their motherboard audio chips?We have done tests with the technology, and audio quality on motherboards without an Amp-Up chip inserted show a huge difference from those with a chip. And it's not just differences in audio volume, there are huge improvements in audio quality and clarity, while chips made by different companies will also output different kinds of sound.At launch, we will offer what we call the premium upgrade kit, which contains three Amp-Up chips for users to play with.Q: Since the motherboard industry is already mature, is there anywhere else that Gigabyte's motherboard business is looking to for opportunities?Lo: We are already in the top-two in the global motherboard industry; so basically, we already have a rather superior branding position, and with our long and attentive channel development, no matter what kind of fluctuations occur in the market, we will continue to be optimistic about performance in the future.In addition to motherboards, we also have a new product called Brix, designed based on Intel's Next Unit of Computing (NUC) concept.Haston: The Brix is smaller than Intel's NUC reference model and can support up to Intel Core i7 processors.Tseng: This product is a result of cross-business-unit cooperation. Although the Brix is made by other business units, the motherboard business unit is the one handling sales to retail channels.As James just said, we stand in a rather good position; therefore, in addition to strengthening our existing product lines, expanding into more PC-related applications is one of our major goals. Applications such as thin mini-ITX form factor motherboards and all-in-one PCs are both product lines that the motherboard business unit is providing support on.Light industrial PC applications such as kiosks, which need small form factor motherboards, for small-to-medium enterprises are also an area that we are expanding into, and in fact, many of our motherboard competitors are also aggressively competing for orders in these areas.Q: What is the status of motherboard competition in China? What strategies is Gigabyte taking to gain advantages in the market?Lo: China is a market with a scale similar to that of North America or Europe. There are 300-400 first- to third-tier cities in the country, with third-tier cities having populations of at least 1-2 million. The country's high population and good economy have allowed it to achieve a PC penetration rate higher than all other emerging markets, which has boosted motherboard demand in the country.Currently, close to 40% of motherboard shipments in the global DIY market are contributed by the China market, showing how important this market is to the motherboard industry. However, motherboards shipped to China are still mainly entry-level and low-end models.Since demand in the China market mostly comes from first-time buyers, while a large portion of consumers are price-oriented, price competition is a common strategy for gaining share in the market.Gigabyte has already been operating in China's motherboard market for more than 10 years, but we actually do not have any special strategy for the market except careful channel management, which includes both channel expansion and maintenance. For the future, we will continue strengthening our brand and releasing more new products and better services for the market.Currently, we are seeing rather healthy progress towards achieving our motherboard shipment goals for 2013.Tseng: Market shares have become an important index for the motherboard market. Only vendors with a good position can expect to continue to survive in the market.Many of the second- to lower-tier vendors have already been left out of mainstream motherboard competition, and we've seen most of them turning to focus on other industries to find better opportunities.Q: How about other emerging markets? What are Gigabyte's plans for them?Lo: We have also been operating in emerging markets such as Brazil, Russia, India and Southeast Asia for over 10 years, so these markets are not really much of a problem for us. As for the Africa market, we are still observing its status, but the market is still rather small currently.Q: What do you think of Thunderbolt's progress in the motherboard industry?Lo: In terms of technical ability, Gigabyte has no issues developing motherboards featuring Thunderbolt, and we are one of the few players able to do so.However, whether Thunderbolt can become a popular standard will depend on consumer demand.Q: What is the company's view of the motherboard market in the second half of 2013? Will Haswell or Windows 8 have a chance to boost motherboard demand?Lo: New product launches will definitely benefit us, as many consumers will try to replace their old PCs with new ones; therefore, we are optimistic about the sales contributions from Haswell and Windows 8.As for the second half, we expect the market to stay healthy and Gigabyte will continue to remain on a stable track.Motherboard executives at Gigabyte (from left to right): James Lo, Raymond Tseng and Stewart Haston.Photo: Joseph Tsai, June 2013

Europe may levy anti-dumping tariffs on China-made solar products. This will increase the prices of China-made solar products in Europe. To retaliate, China will likely impose tariffs on Europe-based polysilicon through its on-going anti-dumping investigation into US-, South Korea-, and Europe-based polysilicon makers. According to UK-based media, The Telegraph, most EU state members oppose the punitive tariff that may be as high as 67%. According to the report, countries such as Germany, the UK, and The Netherlands oppose the trade war because the countries are fearful of losing business in China.The magnitude of reaction since the announcement that the EU anti-dumping tariff rate may be in the range of 47-67% has been strong compared to the reaction to the US punitive tariff rate. The reason is because the EU anti-dumping tariff may be levied on China-made solar modules. China is the biggest solar module exporter. The EU punitive tariff will hurt China-based firms where it hurts the most. According to Forbes, China sold about US$21 billion worth of solar panels and components to the EU market in 2012. Despite the strong growth of installations among emerging markets, Europe remains the largest solar market in the world. Also, many Europe-based solar firms exited the market in recent years; hence China-based firms have been dominating the market. Some believe it is because of the low price solar modules provided by China-based firms, coupled with lucrative incentives that allow solar installations to soar in Europe. Supporters of the tariff believe that it is precisely due to the low price solar modules that have put Europe-based solar firms out of business.The solar market is still in its infancy in many countries and it is understandable for governments to protect domestic firms.China has been known for providing hefty subsidies to nurture infant industries and solar is one of them. The subsidies, coupled with cheap labor, allow China-based solar firms to produce products using low costs and expand capacity rapidly. It is very difficult for firms from other countries to compete.The possible punitive tariff may just be a way for Europe to get China to sit down for a trade talk. According to UPI.com, officials from China have arrived in Brussels to begin the trade talk on May 27, 2013. The trade talk will include the recent trade dispute over solar panels and wireless telecom equipment.

Apart from gradually replacing traditional lighting, LED lighting is targeting the high-end market with more value-added products. In addition, commercialization of OLED lighting has also started.LED lighting prices were four times as expensive as energy-saving light bulbs in 2011 but by the end of 2012, the difference had narrowed to 30%. Therefore, in order to avoid price competition, international firms have been introducing LED lighting products with features such as adjustable brightness and omni-directional.According to Philips, the lighting revolution involves three stages. The first sees traditional lights replaced by ones with longer lifespan and energy-saving features. The second stage is to introduce integrated LED lighting fixtures instead of adapting LEDs to traditional fixtures. The third stage is to develop new applications, such as ones incroporated into architectural and city designs. Philips believes the current market is at the beginning of the third stage. The aim is to develop new functions to drive growth for the lighting market.Smart lightingPhilips has received the L-Prize award from the US Department of Energy (DOE) for its Queen Star series of LED light bulbs with brightness angle reaching 300 degrees. The product has been introduced to the Taiwan market with retail prices above NT$1,000/unit (US$33.51/unit), which is a few times higher than prices of other LED light bulbs in the market. The firm is also eyeing the smart home market, and has introduced Hue series LED light bulbs that can be operated through mobile devices. A package of bulbs carries a retail price of US$199. Users can download to their mobile devices the specific app for controling the bulbs' brightness and colors. Users can also pre-set lighting schedules. Despite the relatively high price, demand has been strong.Philips predicts in the next eight years, prices of LED lighting will fall more than 80% and penetration rate will increase to 64%. With the market expanding, Philips believes LED lighting with digitalized control will stimulate another wave of demand growth.Japan goes high-endJapan has been the fastest growing LED lighting market. It accounted for 40% of the global market in 2012, and the proportion is expected to remain the same in 2013. But starting from 2014, LED lighting growth in Japan will slow down with penetration rate reaching 59%. Although the importance of Japan in the global LED lighting market may be diminishing, Japan-based firms have been eager to achieve product differentiation by adding values.Toshiba's business strategy centers on combining LED lighting with smart features, while Panasonic focuses on value-added LED lighting. Panasonic has been working to minimize the size and weight of lighting products while aiming for high-power and omni-directional angles. Emphasis has also been given to color-temperature adjustments that allow users to change the lighting according to the different times of the day.Both firms plan to introduce specific products for certain areas in a residential home.OLED lighting on the riseThe OLED technology has been gaining popularity due to the rise of smartphone displays. In addition, commercial OLED lighting has begun to enter volume production. In some recent lighting shows, many firms showcased OLED lighting applications that emphasized featurs such as lightweight, high color-rendering, and design flexibility. The OLED lighting market is expected to take off in 2015.Panasonic Idemitsu OLED Lighting (PIOL), a joint venture of Panasonic and Idemitsu, began volume production of OLED lighting panels in October 2012. According to PIOL, the special feature of OLED lighting is that the color-rendering index (CRI) is higher than 90 with thickness of 2.11mm and weight of 38 grams. The brightness efficiency of the product is only 30lm/W and the lifespan is 10,000 hours. However, PIOL plans to introduce improved products in 2015 and 2018 with brightness reaching 130lm/W and lifespan of 40,000 hours.Lumiotec, a joint venture of Mitsuibishi, Rohm, Toppan Printing and Mitsui, has been expanding capacity. In July 2010, the annual production volume of OLED lighting panels was 40,000 units. The firm currently has a capacity to produce 200,000 units (145mmx145mm) a year. Prices range from JPY13,000-30,000/unit depending on sizes and color temperatures. The firm predicts by 2017, prices may fall to JPY3,000-5,000/unit.According to studies done by Konica Minolta, by 2015, the global LED lighting output value will reach JPY1.4 trillion and OLED lighting output value will reach JPY100 billion. After 2015, OLED lighting will take off and by 2020 when the global LED lighting market output value reaches JPY1.9 trillion, OLED lighting will reach JPY900 billion.In 2012, the brightness efficiency of OLED lighting was less than 50lm/W but by 2015 it is expected to reach 120lm/W, close to the brightness efficiency of 140lm/W of LED lighting. The brightness efficiency of the two products is expected to be the same by 2020. Konica Minolta estimates that by 2015, the price-performance ratio of OLED lighting may reach US$30/1,000 lumens, comparable to the price-performance ratio of US$20/1,000 lumens for LED lighting. By 2020, according to the same study, the price-performance ratio of the two products will both be US$15/1,000 lumens.While Taiwan-based firms emphasize on expanding capacity and improving technologies, Europe-, US-, and Japan-based firms have been shifting focus to added-values and product differentiation for LED lighting products.

The trade war in the solar market does not seem to be stopping. Following the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tariff levied on China-based firms from the US, the EU is likely to follow suit with a tariff rate above 30%. If this tariff comes into effect in June, Taiwan-based solar firms are likely to benefit. According to Sam Hong, president of Taiwan-based Neo Solar Power (NSP), if the tariff is above 30%, it will effectively curb domestic production of solar modules in China.According to a report by The Wall Street Journal on May 9, Karel De Gucht, trade chief of the EU, proposed that punitive tariffs against China-made solar panels and components be in the range of 37.3-67.9%. According to the same report, China-based solar imports account for 80% in Europe's solar market.China is not happy about this.Another report by The Wall Street Journal published on May 9 stated that a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce said "China resolutely opposes plans by the European Union to impose punitive tariffs on imported Chinese solar panels and will protect local companies." Yao Jian, the spokesperson for the ministry added that China does not want to see a trade war.The same report noted that according to a copy of plans drafted by the European Commission, the tariffs will come into effect on June 6 and solar firms such as Suntech will face rates of 48.6%. The report added that according to the same document, tariffs on LDK Solar, Trina Solar, and JA Solar will be 55.9%, 51.5%, and 58.7%, respectively.A commentary from China's official news agency Xinhua News detailed the trade value between the EU and China in the first four months of 2013 in order to show that China is an important trade partner for the EU. In addition, the report said, "The notion that china will do nothing and quietly accept the duties is unrealistic." The report also stated their could be possible damage to the job market in Europe if the European Commission decides to set tariffs above 60%.China is not the only one opposing the tariffs. The Alliance For Affordable Solar Energy (AFASE), a Europe-based coalition of 450 Europe-based solar companies, sent an open letter to De Guct expressing concerns over the duties which the Alliance believes will hamper the growth of solar energy in the EU, according to Australia-based solar news media Energy Matters.Europe may levy tariffs on China-made solar panels in JunePhoto: Digitimes file photo

Many of the emerging solar markets are hot - both literally and metaphorically - because of their abundant sunshine hours and geographical locations. Solar investors no longer look to developed solar markets such as Germany and Italy as the governments of the two countries continue to reduce solar incentives. Solar firms are turning their focus to emerging solar markets such as Japan, China, the US, India and the Middle East.France-based gas and oil firm, Total, is currently eyeing the solar market in Qatar, according to a report from Gulf Times. Total is also a large shareholder of US-based solar firm SunPower, owning 66%, according to the same report.Arnaud Chaperon, Total senior vice-president (New Energies Division), stated that Qatar may achieve renewable energy capacity of 1,800MW by 2018, according to the report.That is a lot of renewable energy capacity. Of course, not all will be solar installations but the figure is quite impressive. According to Wikipedia, the largest solar power plant in the world that is currently running is the Agua Caliente Solar Project in the US with installed capacity of 397MW, due to achieve full completion in 2014. The second largest solar power plant is the Charanka Solar Park in India that has a total of 214MW of installed capacity.People might wonder why a rich country with lots of oil and natural gas like Qatar wants to generate electricity from renewable energy. I believe the reason is that every country hopes to save electricity-generating costs and reduce carbon emissions. In fact, Qatar had the highest carbon dioxide emissions per capita in the world for the past 18 years, according to Wikipedia. Most of the carbon emissions in Qatar were from natural gas processing, air-conditioning, water desalination and electricity generation, said Wikipedia. Sunshine is free, although solar panels are not. However, by saving costs and reducing carbon emissions by adopting solar energy, Qatar can have higher profit margins for its oil and natural gas export business and cleaner air for the people to enjoy. Simple.

This is just a personal view, but I love LED light bulbs. I also love the idea of Taiwan-based firms having own-brand LED light bulbs. Lighting is different from many other industries because it is a necessity. Even if you live in a place where sunlight is abundant during the day, at night, people still need lights. In addition, lighting is not just a necessity, it is also a type of art and a way to improve a person's lifestyle.LED lighting is an interesting thing because it takes the semiconductor technology and turns it into products that simply give us light. An LED is often small in area (less than 1 mm2), and integrated optical components may be used to shape its radiation pattern. LEDs present many advantages over incandescent light sources including lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, improved physical robustness, smaller size, and faster switching. However, LEDs powerful enough for lighting are relatively expensive and require more precise current and heat management than compact fluorescent lamp sources of comparable output.In short, LED lighting is more energy efficient, has a longer lifespan, but more expensive than the conventional incandescent lighting. LED lighting is also called solid state lighting because it doesn't have fuses.The problem with LED light bulb in the Taiwan market is that there are no standards. Some brands are much cheaper than others but the type of the light bulbs is the same. According to the online store of Tsann Kuen, a large IT and consumer electronics retail chain in Taiwan, the prices for three energy-saving 23W light bulbs, each with a lifespan of 3,000 hours, are NT$155 (US$5.24) but the prices for one 10W LED light bulb (replacement for 60W incandescent light bulbs) with a lifespan of 40,000 hours are NT$188. To the average consumer, this is seen as buying three light bulbs for the price of one LED light bulb. However, when you actually evaluate the prices according to lifespan, which is easily seen on the box of the light bulbs, unlike the amount of electricity a person can save, the LED light bulb is worth it. When a person buys the three energy-saving light bulbs, in a total, the light bulbs will last for 9,000 hours. This means to match the lifespan of one LED light bulb, the consumer will have to buy 12 energy-saving light bulbs in total (that is NT$620 in total) . But if the person buys a LED light bulb, it can last for 40,000 hours.By the way, according to the online store of WalMart in the US, the prices of 40W incandescent light bulbs from the brand Sylvania are US$2.91/unit with lifespan of 984 hours. This is cheap, but Cree just introduced retrofit 40W LED light bulbs with prices at US$9.97/unit and each light bulb has a lifespan of 25,000 hours. The price difference is about 3.4 times but the lifespan difference is 25.4 times. Something to ponder about.LED light bulbs are for lazy people. People who just want to put the light bulb in and forget about it for the next 40,000 hours. Spending NT$188 on a light bulb that can last for 40,000 hours is much easier than spending NT$155 four times. This is just my personal opinion.

Tier-one tablet makers have been engaging in price competition in the 7-inch tablet market which has eroded profits, according to sources from distribution channels.The popularity of 7-inch tablets continues to rise. To increase sales many brands provided price promotions at Softex 2013 between April 17-21.Acer's Iconia B1 was originally priced at NT$4,990/unit (US$168/unit) but that the show, prices were slashed below NT$4,000/unit. Prices of Asustek's MeMO Pad ME172V dropped to NT$4,990/unit from NT$5,990/unit at the show. Sources from the distribution channels noted that the aim for the price competition was to increase brand recognition.However, this type of development is not beneficial to distributors and brands.In the 10-inch tablet market, distributors have been able to obtain profits. Excluding the iPad series, the average price of most 10-inch models is around NT$8,000-10,000/unit. Because the prices are high, consumers tend to buy accessories such as covers to protect the products, and the profit margins on accessories are usually high. However, prices of 7-inch products are relatively low and distributors stated that consumers are less likely to purchase accessories to protect them. This has been eroding profits for distributors.For brands, price competition does not help to increase brand value. In addition, consumers purchase products from brands because of quality, guarantees, and maintenance services. All these increase costs. But if brands continue to engage in price competition and shrink profit margins, resources will be depleted and firms will suffer.