創新發現誌

Wing K. Lee, CEO of Malaysia' s YTL Communications, is investing heavily to deploy a 4G network and create the world ' s first global WiMAX wireless Internet network

Interview by Lilian Kim an d Lin Li-Ch'i; article by Lin Li-Ch' i

Wing K. Lee, who was appointed CEO of YTL Communications in September 2009, says bluntly that 4G (Fourth Generation Mobile Communications) development in Malaysia cannot follow the same pattern as 3G , where telecommunications operators all went their own separate ways; developing 4G will require close collaboration with content providers if it is to be successful. In the broadband era, the only way to attract subscribers to a new transmission medium is to offer a wide range of content and applications.

Wing K. Lee made a special visit to Taiwan in mid-April, during which he described to Taiwanese wireless communications equipment developers and content developers the mYprize competition, for which YTL Communications provided US$1 million worth of prizes at the beginning of this year. Lee pointed out that Taiwan has large numbers of outstanding software and hardware engineers, and said that, by offering attractive financial rewards, YTL Communications hopes to attract first-class wireless communications equipment developers and content providers to participate in the development of terminal devices and application programs for YTL ’ s WiMAX network. Lee noted that YTL Communications ’ WiMAX wireless network would have its soft launch in the third quarter of 2010, and would be rolled out nationwide in the fourth quarter.

Unlike other WiMAX operators who only provide service within major cities, in the future YTL Communications will be setting up base stations throughout Malaysia , in both urban and rural areas. Wing K. Lee said confidently that YTL Communications ’ WiMAX subscribers will be able to enjoy the world ’ s first WiMAX wireless network that has no dead zones.

A mobile "supercomputer" that you can carry round with you wherever you go

A bright future for cloud computing

By Li Luo

The general trend in the evolution of the PC is towards higher speed, greater multitasking capabilities, PCs that are smaller, more lightweight and easier to carry, increased data storage capability, and lower electricity consumption; at the same time, PCs are running more and larger software applications. In the last 3 – 4 years, as the Internet has grown, mobile Internet access has become much more convenient to use. Even more importantly, there has been a gradual improvement in the quality of cloud computing services. Consumers are starting to ask themselves whether they really need a PC with high computing performance built in.

The emphasis in the Netbook products that have become so popular over the last few years is on slim, small, lightweight design and convenient mobile Internet access; the marketing of these products is not based on ultra-fast computing speed or huge data storage capability. This reflects the fact that, in the era of cloud computing, both computing and data storage can be entrusted to the cloud. If you need particular software, you can access it via the cloud, and then have the results transmitted to your PC; there is no longer any need to make sure that you have every single function built into your PC as an all-in-one device. As PCs get simpler, the price can be expected to fall, stimulating new demand and bringing about a major transformation of the IT market as a whole.

In the future, as the "smart environment " is gradually perfected, there will be a pronounced change in what individuals expect from their PCs. In the future, a mobile computer may not even need to have a built-in computing capability at all; it may be enough for the device to be able to access information from the various types of smart device that surround it. The issue that will be of most importance to IT consumers in the future will be the quality of the information that they receive. Terminal devices will not necessarily need to possess powerful computing capabilities; terminal devices will take many different forms, which will not necessarily bear much resemblance to today's notebook PCs and tablet PCs. What they will need to provide is support for broadband Internet access. The new model that this trend will give rise to has been described as the "device and service" model.

According to Kairos Future Group Founder Mats Lindgren:

Social networking can give us insights into how industries will develop in the future

By Lin Li-Ch'i

As the already large number of blogs continues to grow, social media have become a source of market information that business owners and managers cannot afford to ignore. Mats Lindgren, the founder of Swedish management consulting firm Kairos Future Group, leveraged the cloud computing-based Software as a Service (SaaS) concept to develop the SoMe Tracker and SoMe Analyzer, which permit real-time monitoring and analysis of the videos, photos and text content on social networking sites. This enables Kairos Future Group to undertake broader, deeper analysis of the preferences and trends hidden in market data than other consultancies and market research firms can achieve, helping the Group's customers to make correct decisions regarding products and services.

Mats Lindgren explains that Kairos Future Group's main business area is helping enterprises to understand industry trends, using scenario analysis and development strategies to identify sources of continued future growth for the enterprise.

As a research firm and a futurism think-tank, Kairos Future Group' s business development focuses on four key areas: trends and society, consumer and marketing, leadership and change, and regional development and tourism. By examining trends and undertaking scenario analysis, Kairos Future Group is able to collaborate closely with its clients, helping clients to identify suitable long-term development strategies.

Leveraging ICT to enhance quality and strengthen national competitiveness

Taiwan’s precision agriculture sector adopts cloud computing 

 By Ch’in Chen-Chia 

As part of its efforts to promote the use of information and communications technology (ICT) to support the development of the precision agriculture sector in Taiwan, the Innovative DigiTech-Enabled Applications & Services Institute (IDEAS), Institute for Information Industry has made available a number of new technologies and collaborated closely with the private sector; these efforts are already starting to produce results. Weng Yu-Sheng, Director of IDEAS’ Kaohsiung Innovation & Research Center, notes that ICT is coming into more and more widespread use in precision agriculture, and that this year should see the introduction of cloud computing technology into the precision agriculture sector.

 In orchid cultivation, the plant cultivation success rate has usually been around 40 – 50%. Using ICT, this can be increased to 80 – 90%. Making full use of ICT can help both to maintain quality standards and to ensure stable production volume, and should lead to the development of a high-profit “blue ocean” market for Taiwan’s precision agriculture industry.

 Weng Yu-Sheng explains that the overall trend is towards a new type of agricultural service platform that emphasizes the use of relatively simple, lightweight equipment at the front end, and the use of cloud computing technology at the back end. “Using simple, lightweight equipment at the front end” means installing sensors and communications gateways on farms, while back-end management and analysis systems will be implemented through the use of cloud computing-based resource sharing. Whereas in the past farmers might have needed to invest NT$1 million or more in expensive monitoring and control software, hardware and services, the amount that they need to spend will now be reduced to around NT$300,000. Once this type of cloud computing technology has reached maturity, Taiwan’s agricultural and aquaculture industries will be able to expand into overseas locations; experts will be able to monitor and manage the production environment in these overseas production locations remotely, without needing to go overseas themselves.