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Entertainment Expo returns: 8 events of film, TV, music and digital entertainment promote Hong Kong as centre for cultural exchange

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 8 March 2023 – The 19th Entertainment Expo Hong Kong is being held from 2 March to 16 April, showcasing the many facets of film, TV, music and digital entertainment. This year’s Expo will feature eight exciting industry events during the month-long entertainment extravaganza.

FILMART is Asia’s largest cross-media and cross-industry entertainment content trade expo. This year’s 27th edition has attracted 700 exhibitors from more than 25 countries and regions.

The Entertainment Expo has been held since 2005 with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council as the overall facilitator and in cooperation with different entertainment bodies. It is fully supported by the Create Hong Kong’s Film Development Fund. Mr Leon Lai continues to serve as the Hong Kong Entertainment Ambassador.

The Expo’s kick-off ceremony will take place on 13 March, the first day of the HKTDC Hong Kong International Film and TV Market (FILMART), at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, gathering Hong Kong and global entertainment industry heavyweights.

HKTDC Hong Kong International Film and TV Market (FILMART), 13-16 March
FILMART is Asia’s largest cross-media and cross-industry entertainment content trade expo. This year’s 27th edition, held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC), has attracted 700 exhibitors from more than 25 countries and regions. In addition to Hong Kong’s major film and television companies, more than 20 pavilions from, Japan, Mainland China, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Italy, the United States and more are featured at FILMART.

There will be a record-breaking number of Mainland Chinese exhibitors. Participating mainland provinces include Beijing, Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai and more. Additionally, the three major Mainland streaming platforms iQIYI, Tencent and Youku as well as renowned content producers and distributors, such as Zhejiang Huace Film & TV, Daylight Entertainment, Fantawild, Beijing Yiding Legend Culture Co., Ltd, Linmon Media, and more, will showcase their work.

Furthermore, local filmmakers, including Edko Films, Emperor Motion Pictures, Golden Scene, Mandarin, Media Asia, One Cool Pictures, PCCW Media, Universal Films and more, will release and introduce their films.

Aside from the exhibition, FILMART features a series of events, such as press conferences, showcases, summits, seminars, market screenings and more, enabling participants from around the world to exchange ideas and build connections.

EntertainmentPulse, 13-16 March
EntertainmentPulse, the concurrent conference series of FILMART, will feature leading industry speakers who will discuss a variety of topics, including the hype behind dating and romance reality shows, application of Web3 in entertainment industry and Chinese donghua as soft power. Speakers include Jiang De Fu, COO of Bona Film Group, whose 2021 release The Battle at Lake Changjin grossed in excess of RMB 5.7 billion and became the highest grossing film in Mainland China. Other speakers include Hou Hong Liang, President and Producer of Daylight Entertainment, which curated famous drama series, such as Nirvana in Fire and The Story of Ming Lan, and Sebastian Kim, Director of International Content Sales and Acquisition, CJ ENM from Korea, who has successfully promoted tvN’s popular Korean dramas, such as 25, 21 in 2022 that became a popular drama globally through online streaming.

Moreover, EntertainmentPulse also welcomes Sanmesh Thakur, Executive Vice President and Territory Head – APAC of ZEE Entertainment and Ziraviss Vindhanapisuth, Vice President of International Business from BEC World, to explore the future of the Asian entertainment market.

Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF), 30 March-10 April
Founded in 1976, HKIFF is the oldest film festival in Asia and the largest cultural event in Hong Kong. This year, the festival will be held in both physical and online format, with Golden Horse and Golden Statue winner Aaron Kwok as the festival’s ambassador.

To commemorate the passing of the godfather of France’s New Wave cinema, Jean-Luc Godard, this year’s HKIFF presents a retrospective of eight of his films with his ex-wife and muse Hanne Karin Bayer. The films include The Little Soldier (1963), on which the two collaborated for the first time, A Women Is a Women (1961) , for which Hanne received the Silver Bear Award for Best Actress at the Berlin Film Festival, and To Live Her Life (1962) , for which Jean-Luc won the Venice Film Festival’s Grand Jury Prize.

The Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA), 16 April
Entering its 41st year, the HKFA ceremony will be held at the Grand Theatre of Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Gathering the hottest actors, directors and celebrities from around the world, the event will crown winners in 19 categories, including the Professional Achievement Award and Lifetime Achievement Award.

ifva Festival, 2-11 March
Organised by the Hong Kong Arts Centre, ifva has established itself as Asia’s leading force in short film, animation and media arts, providing a platform for Hong Kong and Asian creative talents to promote their work. The 28th ifva Festival kicked off on 2 March with the opening of media arts exhibition CINEMA 2.0: Illuminating Vacuum, alongside works of finalists of the ifva Awards Media Art category. Programmes include All About Us student creative film showcase, pop-up VR cinema, conversations on VR and media arts exhibition Wend a Way by Lau Ching-wa Jess. The ifva Awards winners will be announced on 11 March at the awards presentation ceremony.

Asian Film Awards (AFA), 12 March
After being held in Busan, South Korea for the past two editions, AFA returns to Hong Kong for its 16th edition, with support from Create Hong Kong and Film Development Fund at Hong Kong Palace Museum. This year, the Academy has put together a star-studded guest list of nominees and presenters. They include internationally renowned filmmakers Zhang Yimou, Kore-eda Hirokazu, Hamaguchi Ryusuke, Lav Diaz, Darezhan Omirbaev, Peter Chan and Anthony Chen; star actors Sammo Hung, Abe Hiroshi, Carina Lau, Do Do Cheng, Sandra Ng, Nishijima Hidetoshi, Park Hae-il, Suzuki Ryohei, Zhang Yi, Happy Salma, Ji Chang-wook and Chrissie Chau. The best and brightest of the Asian film industry will gather in Hong Kong to witness this grand event.

Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF), 13-15 March
A major financing platform in Asia, HAF connects filmmakers, investors, producers and distributors. Many well-known industry talents have previously participated in the forum, including Jia Zhangke, Jiang Wen, Lu Chuan and Ning Hao from Mainland China, Peter Chan Ho Sun, Stanley Kwan Kam Pang, Ann Hui On Wah, Fruit Chan and Pang Ho Cheung from Hong Kong, Tsai Ming Liang, Wei Te Sheng, Chung Mong Hong and Leon Dai from Taiwan, Kore-eda Hirokazu, Kurosawa Kiyoshi, Kawase Naomi and Iwai Shunji from Japan, Park Chan Wook, Kim Jee Woon, Bong Joon Ho and Im Sang Soo from Korea, as well as Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Ekachai Uekrongtham, Nonzee Nimibutr and Pen-ek Ratanaruang from Thailand.

The 21st HAF selected 28 in-development projects (IDP) and 15 work-in-progress projects (WIP) from 350 submissions from 38 countries and regions, covering a variety of genres, including comedy, horror, fantasy, romance, suspense, drama and animation. Alongside projects from acclaimed filmmakers and producers, such as Arsalan Amiri, Anthony Chen, Fruit Chan, Stanley Kwan, Teddy Robin, Lin Yu Hsien, Tian Zhuangzhuang, Nai An, Jakrawal Nilthamrong, Nader Saeivar as well as venerable festival director Marco Müller as producer. 22 directors are making their feature debut and 10 film projects from Hong Kong are among the highlights.

Digital Entertainment Summit, 15 March
Together with the Hong Kong Digital Entertainment Association, the HKTDC hosts the 13th Digital Entertainment Summit, with this year’s theme being Uncovering the Application of Web3 in Entertainment Industry. Evan Auyang, Group President of Animoca Brands, Jenefer Brown, EVP and Head of Global Products & Experiences of Lionsgate, Lucas Cheung, Managing Partner of Gusto Collective, and Jaeson Ma, Co-Founder & CEO of OP3N, will share how technologies change the future of entertainment industry.

Hashtag: #HKTDC

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About the HKTDC

Established in 1966, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body dedicated to creating opportunities for Hong Kong’s businesses. With 50 globally, including 13 in Mainland China, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a platform for doing business with the mainland, Asia and the world. With more than 50 years of experience, the HKTDC organises and to provide companies, particularly SMEs, with business opportunities in the mainland and international markets, while providing business insights and information via , and including the . For more information, please visit: . Follow us on @hktdc

HKTDC Media Room:

Growth in Asia will lose pace in 2023, only to pick up next year

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 8 March 2023 – Atradius, a global trade insurance leader, has today released its 2023 Regional Economic Outlook report, setting out growth forecasts for key economies in Asia, including the outlook for a newly reopened China, and offering a long-term view on the risks of geo-economic fragmentation resulting from ongoing supply chain reconfigurations and geopolitical tensions.

Please find below the key takeaways from Bert Burger, Principal Economist, Atradius, and the full report is available for download here.

Overall Asia macro-economic outlook:

  • Asian economies are on course for modest growth this year as they try to shake off the negative effects of tighter financial conditions, inflation, a weak global economic environment and geopolitical tensions.

  • Except for China and Thailand, most economies in Asia will likely see lower real GDP growth this year than in 2022. However, as the aforementioned headwinds weaken over the coming months and the impact of China’s reopening cascades through the region, the recovery is expected to pick up momentum in 2024.

Major Asian economies’ performance: a mixed bag

  • For China, weak export demand from developed economies and a struggling real estate sector will counterbalance the benefits of reopening and supportive fiscal and monetary policies — capping growth at no higher than 4.5% this year compared to 3% in 2022. Over the long run, structural issues such as an ageing population, low productivity growth, human capital mismatch, supply chain shifts and geopolitical rivalry may limit China’s growth, risking a middle-income trap.
  • India is set to be the fastest-growing economy in Asia this year and next, expanding at 4.8% and 6.8%, respectively. The country’s relatively strong performance is underpinned by a less severe surge in inflation, a strong domestic economy that is offsetting decline in external demand, and improving overall business environment, which is attracting international investments.
  • In Japan and South Korea – growth will be muted this year at 0.7% and 0.8%, respectively – as high inflation dents their recovery. High household debt in South Korea has kept a lid on consumer spending after recent rate hikes. Meanwhile, pent-up demand in Japan will partly compensate for inflation, supporting the recovery in domestic consumption to continue but at a slower rate than last year.

ASEAN-5[1] more resilient than ever:

  • With their increasingly robust economies and financial systems, the five largest emerging markets in Southeast Asia known as ASEAN-5 have remained resilient against recent external shocks, making them more likely to benefit from the global supply chain diversification trend.
  • The Philippines is poised to grow the fastest at 4.1%, followed by Thailand (4%) and Vietnam (4%). Thailand’s resurgence as a preferred holiday destination will boost tourism revenues and push growth to 4% compared to 2.6% in 2022. Indonesia will be a laggard, growing at 3.6% before seeing a surge in growth to 5.5% in 2024, as private investments benefit from a new law.

Emerging risk of geo-economic fragmentation:

  • While the diversification of supply chains, triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions between the US and China, has benefited countries like India, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand, a broadening of this trend may risk a sharp geo-economic fragmentation of financial and trade flows.

  • Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and ensuing sanctions on the country have already led to increased uncertainty around future trade relations. The potential consequences of a fragmentation scenario – reduced investments, jobs and growth are expected to result in large economic losses for Asia due to its central role in global manufacturing.


[1] ASEAN-5 consists of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. Together with five other states, they form ASEAN or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Hashtag: #economicoutlook #atradius #Asia #Asiaeconomy #economicgrowth #globaltrade

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Atradius

Atradius is a global provider of credit insurance, surety and collection services, with a strategic presence in over 50 countries. The credit insurance, bond and collection products offered by Atradius protect companies around the world against the default risks associated with selling goods and services on credit. Atradius is a member of Grupo Catalana Occidente (GCO.MC), one of the largest insurers in Spain and one of the largest credit insurers in the world. You can find more information online at

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Frost & Sullivan Positions NEC as the Market Leader in the Frost Radar(TM): Biometrics Authentication Solutions, 2022 Benchmark

Tokyo, Japan – Newsfile Corp. – March 7, 2023 – NEC Corporation (TSE: 6701) has been recognized by Frost & Sullivan as the leader in the Frost Radar™: Biometrics Authentication Solutions, 2022 benchmarking system, announced by NEC on February 17.

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FROST RADAR: Biometric Authentication Solutions, 2022

This is the second time in a row that NEC maintains its position as the market leader, reflecting NEC’s pivot toward biometric solutions, which are providing the company with significant growth opportunities.

Frost & Sullivan indicated that NEC achieved overall Growth and Innovation Leadership on the Frost Radar™ as the result of its ongoing innovations to its extensive portfolio.

In addition, the analyst firm appraised initiatives such as the NEC Group’s AI and Human Rights Principles, as well as the company’s thought leadership on decentralized identity and self-sovereign ID.

“With its ongoing leadership throughout the biometric solutions industry, NEC’s robust biometric authentication solution emphasizes how NEC’s ability to meet existing and new customer demands, empower end users to take control over their biometric data, and steer the biometric industry into the next phase of growth,” said Danielle VanZandt, Industry Manager, Commercial & Public Security Research, Frost & Sullivan.

“NEC’s biometrics solutions are known for their top-level accuracy, and based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) benchmark test* held in 2022, NEC’s iris and face recognition technologies were both ranked first in the world,” said Masato Yoshikawa, Senior Director, Biometrics & Video Analytics Platform Department, NEC Corporation. “During 2023, NEC will take full advantage of these results and launch a scalable and expandable multimodal biometric solution that uses face and iris recognition technology, which will fully contribute to improving security and convenience simultaneously.”

Installed in more than 70 countries and regions worldwide, NEC is a global leader in the field of biometric authentication. Recently, NEC’s biometric technology has been selected for major national projects in Malaysia and Vietnam, contributing to the digitalization of existing government services.

Going forward, NEC will focus on utilizing its biometric authentication technology in new areas such as web3 and more.

Download the full report here:
https://www.nec.com/en/global/analyst-relations/2022biometricsaward/index.html

*NIST benchmark test results do not constitute endorsement of any particular product by the U.S. Government.

Contact Info:
info@honestmedia.com
www.honestmedia.com
1 (212)-256-0315

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About NEC Corporation

NEC Corporation has established itself as a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies while promoting the brand statement of “Orchestrating a brighter world.” NEC enables businesses and communities to adapt to rapid changes taking place in both society and the market as it provides for the social values of safety, security, fairness, and efficiency to promote a more sustainable world where everyone has the chance to reach their full potential. For more information, visit NEC at .

Pow.re secures 100 MW of renewable power in Paraguay and welcomes two industry veterans to the advisory board

MONTREAL (QC), CANADA – Media OutReach – 8 March 2023 – Pow.re Holdings Limited (“Pow.re” or the “Company”), a high-density computing (“HDC”) and fintech enterprise, has entered into a binding agreement with a local partner to secure a 100 MW power allocation at a fixed rate for 5 years from ANDE’s newly built Yguazu substation in Paraguay.

This week, construction began on the power transformation and computation center infrastructure at Pow.re’s 8.5 hectare site directly adjacent to ANDE’s newly commissioned substation.

On February 26th, 2023, ANDE, Paraguay’s national public utility, energized the first of three 500 kV transmission lines between the Itaipu dam and Yguazu. ANDE President, Felix Sosa, announced on Twitter that Paraguay would “for the first time in history be able to withdraw 100% of the power corresponding to it in the ITAIPU Binacional, thus achieving our national energy sovereignty”. The Itaipu dam is the third largest in the world with a 14 GW production capacity, the ITAIPU Binacional agreement entitles Paraguay and Brazil to consume 50% of this capacity each (historically, Paraguay has sold the bulk of its share of Itaipu power capacity to Brazil).

The project is a singular opportunity to generate emission-free computing power from a world-class hydroelectric power plant, made even more timely as the US energy sector has been plagued with soaring electricity prices due to regional reliance on natural gas. Pow.re Director of Engineering, Maxime Bisaillon stated, ”This is a unique opportunity to access a large amount of 100% renewable power at a competitive price. We believe this set of circumstances doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world” adding, “This further validates our position that stranded sustainable power can be put to use for the mutual benefit of green power producers like Paraguay and HDC enterprises like Pow.re”

When fully operational, the Yguazu site would allow Pow.re to produce an additional estimated 4.5 EH/s (exahash per second) of computing power.

In conjunction with deploying this project, the Company also welcomes Andres Romero and Matthew Carson as advisors. Mr. Romero has an extensive understanding of the South American business landscape and the digital asset mining sector, while Mr. Carson brings a wealth of experience deploying large-scale projects such as Project Spokane and Whinstone. Both advisors formerly held positions at Canaan Creative (NASDAQ: CAN) and Northern Data (ETR: NB2) and are respected industry veterans that will help advance the Company’s business development goals.

Hashtag: #Pow.re

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Pow.re Holdings Limited

Pow.re is a high-density computing operator deploying data centers in proximity to sustainable stranded energy sources to produce computing power. Pow.re will leverage its growing production to commodify computing power markets for hedging and investment.

Company Website :
LinkedIn :
Twitter : @powremines

Omnichat unveils AI Chatbot integrated with ChatGPT, empowering chat commerce in multiple messaging platforms

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 8 March 2023 – Omnichat as a leading omni-channel chat commerce solution provider, launches “Omni AI” – a new chatbot integrated with ChatGPT 3.5. The integration has created seamless communications with artificial intelligence across multiple messaging platforms covering WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, LINE. Leveraging the most advanced AI language model, Omni AI serves as a digital assistant of retailers to handle customers’ enquiry, recommend products as well as facilitate marketing campaign planning with automated customer support, marketing and sales service.

Omnichat launches AI Chatbot integrated with ChatGPT, applying in WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram & LINE with automated customer service, marketing and sales.
Omnichat launches AI Chatbot integrated with ChatGPT, applying in WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram & LINE with automated customer service, marketing and sales.

Achieving 300% Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) growth in the past three consecutive years, Omnichat empowers 5,000+ companies around the globe including OSIM, Timberland, Logitech, Sa Sa, Venchi, Eu Yan Sang, etc. In 2022, the company helped retailers generate US$600 million in Gross Merchandise Value, which was a 230% YoY growth. Daily active social messenger users through Omnichat reached 23 million and the conversion rate facilitated by Omnichat was 500% higher than the average of eShop.

The incorporation of ChatGPT into Omnichat’s all-in-one messaging platform marks a significant development in transforming customer engagement through AI-powered chatbots. “With its conversational capabilities, Omni AI is more capable to understand the preference of customers and facilitate retailers to generate higher conversions across multiple messaging platforms,” Alan Chan, Founder & CEO of Omnichat remarked. “Combing with our online-merge-offline sales solution and customer journey which pair with revenue tracking across online and offline channels, we are excited to see how Omni AI can further enable retailers to drive revenue growth to the next level.”

With a presence in Asia Pacific, Omnichat is planning to expand to global markets within this year. The team grows 5 times from 2022 to over 100 staff now. The company is looking for the next round of funding. “With the power of OpenAI’s ChatGPT technology, we aim to develop the first US$10 billion SaaS company in Asia in future,” Alan said.

For more information or request a trial of Omni AI, please visit
https://blog.omnichat.ai/chatgpt-202303/

Hashtag: #Omnichat

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Omnichat:

Founded in 2017, Omnichat is an omni-channel chat commerce solution provider that centralises customers’ conversations from WhatsApp Business Platform, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, LINE, WeChat and website live chat into a single platform to enhance efficiency.

Leveraging online-merge-offline(OMO) sales integration, marketing automation, chatbots as well as customer service platform, Omnichat is committed to empowering brands to deliver personalised shopping experience and drive smart retail transformation.

Website:
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ChangeNOW Plans to Apply for a Hong Kong SFC Crypto Trading License After Rapid User Growth in the City

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 8 March 2023 – ChangeNOW, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, has released statistics on its users in Hong Kong, whose numbers have soared in the past few weeks. Furthermore, the exchange announced its plans to apply for a license from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to provide crypto trading services in the city under the new regulatory framework.

ChangeNOW’s metrics indicate that Hong Kong users are highly interested in the platform. Its Hong Kong user base has grown by 62% in February compared to January, according to its figures, showing a steady upswing in demand.

Based on a survey of 389,345 people across 26 countries, the Finder 2022 Cryptocurrency Adoption Index ranks Hong Kong fourth for its adoption of cryptocurrencies. According to it, there are approximately 1.4 million crypto owners in Hong Kong, which represents a 21% ownership rate, higher than the global average of 15%.

The sudden rise in popularity of ChangeNOW in Hong Kong is most probably triggered by a combination of several factors. These include ChangeNOW’s good name, extensive product and service infrastructure, an innovative customer service model, along with low fees and fast transaction times.

ChangeNOW has a well-earned reputation for being a trustworthy crypto exchange. This is especially after the case in late 2021 when it returned over $15 million in crypto to Compound, which lost over $89 million due to a system bug. In total, ChangeNOW was able to recover over $19 million in crypto funds.

Over 3.5M users worldwide have taken advantage of the platform’s ecosystem built over 6.5 years of operation. Aside from its native non-custodial NOW Wallet, ChangeNOW also offers a portfolio tracker and crypto payment service. In addition, it provides an affiliate program and custody solutions for businesses.

Beginners will find the platform’s interface easy to use, and Mandarin localization aims to make it accessible to Chinese-speaking Hong Kong residents. ChangeNOW allows Hong Kong users to buy, sell, and exchange more than 800 crypto assets and 40 fiat currencies, including HKD and USD, through a mobile and web-friendly interface.

However, ChangeNOW’s key feature is its non-custodial nature. The crypto industry is still reeling from the FTX/Almeda scandal, involving Bankman-Fried and his fellow founders stealing $8 billion from FTX customers’ crypto deposits for Alameda’s own purposes. This is a major reason for ChangeNOW’s growing popularity in Hong Kong, as its non-custodial model ensures that there is no risk of users’ funds being misused in any way.

Additionally, the platform’s fixed rate options along with the fees built into the exchange rate, make it a popular choice among users who prefer to know what they’re getting up front.

Although other exchanges have also announced expansion plans in Hong Kong, the number of Hong Kongers exchanging assets with ChangeNOW continues to rise. This highlights the fact that ChangeNOW’s user base is growing in the region despite the increased competition.

With its licensing plans in Hong Kong, ChangeNOW further cements its commitment to bringing cryptocurrency exchange services on an international scale in an efficient, compliant manner.

Hashtag: #changeNOW, #wallet, #exchanger #buy #crypto


The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

ChangeNOW

AsiaInfo Technologies Announces 2022 Annual Results

Revenue Up by 12.2%, Net Profit Rebounded in 2H 2022 with Net Profit Margin Stood at 10.7%

Results Highlights:

  • Maintained a good momentum in overall business development with a growth of more than 10% in new orders year-on-year.
  • Revenue amounted to RMB7,738 million, a year-on-year increase of 12.2%.
  • Revenue from the Three New business* amounted to RMB2,573 million, a year-on-year increase of 64.2%, accounted for 33.3% of total revenue.
  • Gross profit amounted to RMB2,939 million, a year-on-year increase of 11.1%.
  • Profit for the Year amounted to RMB824 million, a year-on-year increase of 5.4%.
  • Net profit margin reached 10.7%, a slight decrease of 0.6 percentage point year-on-year.
  • Proposed a final dividend of HK$0.401 per Share with an annual dividend payout ratio of 40%.

Note*: Three New business represents digital intelligence-driven operation, vertical industries and enterprise cloudification, and Operation Support Systems (“OSS”)

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 7 March 2023 – AsiaInfo Technologies Limited (“AsiaInfo Technologies” or the “Company”, which together with its subsidiaries, is referred to as the “Group”; HKEX stock code: 1675), is pleased to announce its annual results for the year ended 31 December 2022 (the “Year”).

Overall results

In 2022, AsiaInfo Technologies adhered to the strategy of “One consolidation, Three developments”, and achieved a double-digit growth in revenue. Its revenue amounted to RMB7,738 million, increased by 12.2% year-on-year. Among which, revenue from the Three New business maintained a rapid growth and amounted to RMB2,572 million, increased by 64.2% year-on-year. The proportion of the Three New business to revenue reached 33.3%, increased by 10.6 percentage points year-on-year. As the Company strengthened its cost control and efficiency enhancement in the second half of the year, and improved its staff productivity, the gross profit for the year amounted to RMB2,939 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 11.1%, with gross profit margin reaching 38.0%. Net profit rebounded in the second half of the year, and amounted to RMB824 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 5.4%. Net profit margin remained a double-digit figure, reaching 10.7%.

Commenting on the Group’s results performance in 2022, Dr. TIAN Suning, Chairman and Executive Director of the Group, said, “China strives to facilitate the intensive integration of digital technology with the real economy, so as to realise the economic and social development from “volume growth” to “quality development”. AsiaInfo has been propelling the digital-intelligence transformation with technologies like 5G, AI and big data in thousands of industries, creating digital-intelligence value for its customers. In 2022, facing the resurgence of COVID-19 and other complicated situations, the Company overcame tremendous difficulties. Through the measures of increasing online collaborative efforts, expanding the scope of remote delivery project and refining cost control, the Company sustained a good momentum in business development and continued to sustain a double-digit growth in revenue. Meanwhile, the Company’s net profit rebounded significantly in the second half of the year, maintaining its decent profitability.

After taking into full consideration of various factors including Shareholders’ returns, the profitability, cash flow and capital requirement for future development of the Company, the Board has decided to propose the declaration of the final dividend of HK$0.401 per Share for the year at the Annual General Meeting with the annual dividend payout ratio of 40%.

Digital intelligence-driven operation business restructuring initially completed with revenue surpassing RMB1 billion

The publication of the “Twenty Provisions on Data” brings new driving force to accelerate the development of the big data and data operation industry. Leveraging the legal, compliant and rich data sources, the Company developed data-driven operation (DSaaS) products for different industries and business scenarios with its innovative and leading AI technology and increased marketing efforts. In telecommunications industry, DSaaS business benefited from the rapid development of 5G and the high growth in the digital transformation of the government-enterprise industry, the Company maintained its market leading position. Beyond telecommunications industry, the Company further focused on the digitalisation of government and enterprise, digital internet of vehicles (“IoV”) and digital consumption and developed replicable, marketable and operable digital intelligence business and operation services, which are recognised by leading customers including Digital Chongqing and Changan Auto. In 2022, revenue from the digital intelligence-driven operation was RMB1,150 million, increased by 57.6% year-on-year, accounting for 14.9% of the revenue.

Energy, government affairs and transportation and other industries formed in-depth and sustainable models

In 2022, the Company continued to focus on five strategic sectors and had developed in-depth and sustainable growth models in the energy, government affairs and transportation sectors. Moreover, the Company controlled risks stringently and ensured its vertical industries businesses maintained a high growth momentum under sound conditions, with revenues in the energy and transportation industries increased by 308% and 80% year-on-year, respectively, and revenue in the government affairs industry increased by 28% year-on-year.

In the energy industry, the Company has secured a leading edge in 5G private network solutions in the nuclear power, wind power and others. Of which, the Company’s nuclear power projects with CNNC covered four major nuclear power bases, including Changjiang in Hainan Province, Fuqing in Fujian Province, Qinshan in Zhejiang Province and Tianwan in Jiangsu Province, with a total of 21 units in operation. In addition, the Company completed the construction of dozens of smart wind farms for Guohua Investment Energy Co., Ltd. and CGN Power Co., Ltd. In the transportation industry, the Company formulated the matured intelligent highway solutions and provided highway network toll collection management, digital intelligent transportation platform, intelligent marketing and customer operation service solutions for highway operation and management customers in Guangdong, Hunan, Yunnan, Shanxi, Gansu and Qinghai provinces. In the government affairs industry, the big data business had taken shape, with more than 50 projects signed during the year, covering scenarios such as data governance, data operation, data trading and city intelligence hubs. In 2022, the revenue from vertical industries and enterprise cloudification business amounted to RMB757 million, up by 78.2% year-on-year.

Grasping the development trend of OSS and BSS business integration

Against the backdrop of the intensive integration of the digital economy with real economy, the telecommunications industry embraces new opportunities. The Company closely followed and monitored the industry demand and leveraged the development trend of BSS and OSS integration in the 5G era to constantly innovate 5G BSS and OSS products. For the OSS business, the Company’s 5G network intelligent products focused on computing network, network automation, network digital twin and others, enabling the digital-intelligence transformation and innovation in the telecommunication industry, and facilitated the evolution of customers’ network automation to move to a further advanced level. With the deepening advancement of 5G deployment in 2022, the Company’s OSS business expanded rapidly and achieved a revenue of RMB666 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 61.3%. Both its market share and market position were bolstered significantly.

For BSS business, the Company further strengthened its market position and kept on fulfilling new projects and demand with digital intelligent products and solutions, facilitating the digital-intelligence transformation of its customers. The Company assisted operators in digital-intelligence innovation through products such as RPA, digital human, digital twins and databases. The Company powered up various business support systems and modules by creating new billing applications such as intelligent operation and maintenance, intelligent billing and payment health inspection. In terms of digital and intelligent planning, the Company deeply participated in the standardisation and planning of the digital and intelligent cloud native business operation systems of operators. For new customer exploration, the Company provided China Broadcast Network with a basket of business support solutions in the 5G centralised BSS project and facilitated its successful commercialisation of 5G services. In 2022, the revenue from the Company’s BSS business amounted to RMB4,925 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 0.2%.

Seize the opportunity of infotech application innovation

As a key player in the information technology and application innovation initiative, the Company continued to increase investments in R&D in innovative products concerned to accelerate the compatibility process of technology and product localisation. In 2022, the Company established AsiaInfo Anhui Technology to independently operate and manage database product business, achieving breakthroughs in many industries such as telecommunication, government affairs, transportation and healthcare. In addition, in Motainlun ranking, AntDB had been significantly advanced from 34th in January 2022 to 12th in February 2023. The contract value in 2022 was approximately RMB 60 million.

Future Prospect

Talking about the future strategies, Dr. TIAN said, “The Company always adheres to the strategy of ‘One consolidation, Three developments’ and firmly advance towards the goal of ‘achieving a business scale of over RMB10 billion in 2025, half of which comprises of the new business’. We will press ahead the ‘Three New business’ as the core driver to the rapid growth of the overall revenue of the Company. In terms of digital intelligence-driven business, the Company will grasp the opportunities brought by the ‘Twenty Provisions on Data’ policy, promote the replication of DSaaS scenario-based products in scale in digital TMT, digital government and enterprise, digital IoV, digital consumption and other areas. For the OSS business, by focusing on computing network, cloud-network integration and network automation and other areas, the Company will continue to drive OSS market share gain. In the vertical industries and enterprise cloudification, we will further focus on expanding the market in energy, government affairs, transportation and other industries with our proprietary products, striving for improvement in profitability.

“In terms of product R&D, we will advance our technology deployment including 6G OSS/BSS, 6G private network, and computing, communication and perception integration. For the 5G private networks, we will build cloud-based, white-box, open and lightweight 5G base stations and core network equipment based on cloud native, O-RAN and other technologies to empower enterprise digital intelligence transformation. In the digital intelligence sector, for new technologies such as AIGC, we will integrate into the ecology, actively cooperate with leading AI companies. We will well prepare, leveraging our accumulated experience and edges in the telecom industry, and strive to become the first batch of product and solution providers featuring AIGC in the industry.”Hashtag: #asiainfo

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About AsiaInfo Technologies

AsiaInfo Technologies Limited (“AsiaInfo” or “the Company”; Stock code: 01675. HK), founded in 1993, is a leading software product, solution and service provider, as well as a leading provider of full-stack digital and intelligent capabilities. Capitalising on consulting and planning, product R&D, implementation and delivery, system integration, decision intelligence, data operation, customer service and other digital and intelligent core capabilities, AsiaInfo provides enterprise customers in industries such as telecommunications, government affairs, energy, transportation, cable and postal services with end-to-end close loop digital and intelligent transformation service.

AsiaInfo adheres to the strategy of “One consolidation, Three development”, maintains BSS market leadership with high quality and develops new businesses such as 5G OSS network intelligentisation, digital intelligence-driven operation, vertical industries and enterprise cloudification. The Company actively embraces advanced technologies such as 5G, cloud computing, big data, AI, and Internet of Things, forming three major product systems: cloud network, digital intelligence and IT.

Infineon and UMC extend automotive partnership with long-term agreement for 40nm eNVM microcontroller production

MUNICH, GERMANY AND HSINCHU, TAIWAN – Media OutReach – 7 March 2023 – Infineon Technologies AG (FSE: IFX / OTCQX: IFNNY) and United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE: UMC; TWSE: 2303) (“UMC”) today announced a long-term strategic cooperation agreement to multiply capacity for the production of Infineon automotive microcontroller in order to serve the rapidly expanding automotive market. The high-performance microcontroller product leverages Infineon’s proprietary eNVM (embedded non-volatile memories) technology and will be manufactured at UMC’s Singapore fab on its 40nm process.

Microcontroller are key components controlling a wide range of functions in vehicles, and demand is increasing as cars evolve to become ever greener, safer, and smarter. Already this year, Infineon is ramping the selling rate of automotive microcontroller to close to one million per day.

“With this strategic cooperation agreement, we secure additional long-term capacity to serve Infineon’s customers in the fast-growing automotive market. At the center of this partnership is a highly reliable embedded memory solution well suited for enabling next-generation automotive applications while meeting the stringent safety and security requirements for vehicle systems. We are pleased to have UMC as a strategic partner to deliver a reliable supply of high-quality microcontrollers to our customers,” said Rutger Wijburg, Chief Operating Officer of Infineon. “Going forward, Infineon and UMC will further deepen the automotive collaboration in the areas of microcontroller, power management and connectivity solutions.”

“We are excited that Infineon has chosen UMC to produce its automotive microcontroller product at our Fab 12i in Singapore, a strong endorsement of our manufacturing capability and business commitment. This multi-year supply agreement further strengthens our long-standing partnership with Infineon across various automotive, AIoT, and 5G market segments,” said Jason Wang, Co-President of UMC. “UMC’s shipments of automotive products have tripled since 2019, and we expect this strong momentum to continue as demand for automotive semiconductors rises. Given our specialty technology leadership, diversified manufacturing footprint, and focus on quality and operational excellence, we look forward to deepening our collaborations with world-class automotive leaders such as Infineon.”Hashtag: #Infineon #semiconductor #UMC


The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Infineon

Infineon Technologies AG is a global semiconductor leader in power systems and IoT. Infineon drives decarbonization and digitalization with its products and solutions. The company has around 56,200 employees worldwide and generated revenue of about €14.2 billion in the 2022 fiscal year (ending 30 September). Infineon is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: IFX) and in the USA on the OTCQX International over-the-counter market (ticker symbol: IFNNY).

About UMC

UMC (NYSE: UMC, TWSE: 2303) is a leading global semiconductor foundry company. The company provides high quality IC fabrication services, focusing on logic and various specialty technologies to serve all major sectors of the electronics industry. UMC’s comprehensive IC processing technologies and manufacturing solutions include Logic/Mixed-Signal, embedded High-Voltage, embedded Non-Volatile-Memory, RFSOI and BCD etc. Most of UMC’s 12-in & 8-in fabs with its core R&D are located in Taiwan, with additional ones throughout Asia. UMC has total 12 fabs in production with combined capacity over 850,000 wafers per month (8-in equivalent), and all of them are certified with IATF 16949 automotive quality standard. UMC is headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, plus local offices in United States, Europe, China, Japan, Korea & Singapore, with worldwide total 20,000 employees.