SOURCE: Xinhua News Agency

It will offer two kinds of software services -- the outsourcing of software services to large multi-national corporations and the development of proprietary application products for both Chinese and international customers.

The new company, which will formally operate in July, will provide technical support for Microsoft's Windows and Office software packages worldwide.

Industrial analysts here said the joint venture is a part of Microsoft's effort to localize its software technology in China.

Third stage of development

By agreement of the two parts, Microsoft will commit an executive team to the company for two years, which will be responsible for research and development, technical support and business operations as well as training local management team.

Jun Tang, President of Microsoft China, will be the CEO of Wicresoft.

Craig Mundie, a technical officer with Microsoft, said that the establishment of the new joint venture signifies the start of Microsoft's third stage of development in China, which is committed to helping Chinese partners to nurture software know-how with their own intellectual property right.

In the first two stages, Microsoft has set up its own marketing and distribution systems and has established a research and development center in Shanghai, he said.

Source: People's Daily

Cisco Systems, the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, announced today that China Railcom has chosen technology from Cisco for the second phase expansion of their Internet backbone network, CRNet. Following the expansion work, CRNet will offer a 10G link connecting Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and 125 other Chinese cities, making it one of the world's largest broadband networks.

CRNet is a high-speed public network, offering a range of integrated services including dial-up and DDN access, as well as value-added services like VPN, VPDN, IP voice, and video conferencing.

Rick Justice, Cisco's Senior Vice President, Worldwide Field Operations, in Beijing to announce the deal, expressed his appreciation of China Railcom's vision in market expansion and network construction. "When this second phase expansion is completed, CRNet will be one of the largest broadband IP networks in the world. I believe it will greatly contribute to the development of China's communications industry and increase the availability of broadband services in the country."

As data services continue to develop in China and become an increasingly necessary tool for both individuals and enterprises, telecom operators are looking to broadband networks to drive growth and revenue. In 2001, Chinese data subscribers increased by more than 100 percent over the previous year, reaching a total of 33.22 million users. Revenue for these services increased by 31.6 percent, generating over RMB 8.65 billion (US$1.17 billion). It is estimated that Chinese data subscribers will reach 50 million by 2005 and over 280 million in 2010. The construction of broadband networks like CRNet will eliminate bottlenecks and allow operators to move ahead of subscriber growth.

CRNet's second phase network expansion will deploy Cisco's 12400 Internet Routers. The entire project will be completed by the third quarter of this year. Successful cooperation for the second phase expansion is part of a long-term strategic relationship between Cisco and China Railcom that began with the 1st phase project.

Mr. Peng Peng, President of China Railcom, said, "The goal of China Railcom is to reduce cost, create value, and offer long-term high quality services for our subscribers. The second phase expansion of CRNet will broaden the company's IP broadband resources and leverage its network integrity. We plan to expand the network to cover more major cities and developed regions to address the demand of railway subscribers. We look to provide high quality services to railway transportation businesses and individual subscribers in urban and rural areas alike. The construction of our IP broadband network will further facilitate the development of a domestic market, accelerate the maturity of the entire market, and bring advantages and the convenience of broadband services to more users."

"As a new telecom operator in China, China Railcom has aggressively launched its nationwide marketing system and customer service center, offering comprehensive services to subscribers, as well as stimulating the growth of the telecom market," said Jia-bin Duh, Vice President of Cisco Systems and President of Cisco China. "China Railcom's choice to maintain their relationship with Cisco is a strong endorsement of Cisco's solid track record, as well as our rich experience and expertise in IP broadband network construction."

As an integral part of Cisco's IP+Optical strategy, Cisco 12400 Gigabit Router employs industry-unique distributed architecture, capable of providing IP+Optical network infrastructure and service building block for 10Gb/s IP infrastructure. Cisco 12400 Gigabit Routers adopted in CRNet expansion project can increase the bandwidth between core network and edge network, reduce operational costs, and offer the possibilities of accessing IP content and multi-services via an optical network.

Source: International Teledata Group

Airbus In Hangzhou, capital of eastern China's Zhejiang province and the second stop on Lucent's trade-promotion tour, Lucent on Wednesday held a symposium to recommend its database network solution projects to local network users from government, schools and businesses.

So far, Lucent has launched seven regional offices, eight research and development centers, eight joint ventures and three wholly foreign-owned companies in China.

To date, about 75 percent of the world's top 500 companies including Microsoft, Siemens and Motorola have launched businesses in China.

Source: WorldSources, Inc.

(April 26 2002) Audi AG, the luxury arm of German auto giant Volkswagen AG, says China is its second most important overseas market after the United States

By China has become increasingly important to the company with its growing demand for Audi cars even though its current sales in China account for a only a small proportion of its global sales, said Kevin McCann, head of Audi's China operation.

"We intend to continue efforts to bring more new models into China and strengthen our leadership on the Chinese luxury car market," McCann said.

Last year, Audi AG sold 725,000 cars worldwide amounting to an 11-per cent increase from 2000, McCann said. Audi sales in China, including imports and those made in the nation, amounted to 29,370 units last year, up 69 per cent from 2000.

The robust sales in China last year accounted for 30 per cent of the Chinese luxury passenger car market for models priced at above 300,000 yuan (US$36,100).

He said its exports to China were expected to double to more than 2,000 units this year.

Sales of the locally made Audi A6 in the Changchun-based First Automotive Works Volkswagen will increase slightly to 29,500 units this year.

McCann made his remarks during an recent launching ceremony of two sports cars - the TT Coupe and Roadster in Shanghai.

Prices of the two models range from 550,000 yuan (US$66,300) to 650,000 yuan (US$78,300) based on China's tariff cuts on auto imports.

In January, China slashed its tariffs to 43.8 to 50.7 per cent from 70 to 80 per cent, the biggest cut following its entry into the World Trade Organization. The tariffs will decline to 25 per cent by mid-2006.

McCann said the Audi AG would launch its A4 Cabriolet and All-Road Quattro sport utility vehicle in China later this year.

Besides the locally made A6, the company also currently sells its top-notch Audi A8 and A4 in China.

Sales of the A8 amounted to 424 units in China last year, making it the fourth largest number of sales around the world.

Source: China Daily