WiMAX operator Global Mobile rescued by chairman

Global Mobile, a WiMAX licensee based in Taiwan, is to receive a NT$41 million (US$1.34 million) investment from chairman Rosemary Ho. Ho is making the investment to ensure that the company meets the NT$1 billion paid-in capital requirements for WiMAX operators in Taiwan.

Global Mobile fell NT$41 million short of the required NT$1 billion because Chunghwa Telecom’s (CHT’s) application to invest $160 million in Global Mobile was rejected by the National Communications Commission (NCC).

Following this new investment, Ho now owns over one third of Global Mobile. Other shareholders with a large stake in the company include Silicon Integrated Systems (SiS), D-Link, Videoland, Era Digital Media, Davicom Semiconductor and Soft-World International.

Meanwhile, another of Taiwan’s WiMAX licensees, Vastar Cable TV System, has raised NT$1.82 billion of paid-in capital, and will start trialling its WiMAX service towards the end of this year.