Monthly Archives: February 2021

PR Newswire

Unbxd collaborates with Google Cloud to offer AI-powered commerce search on Google Cloud for retail stores

Leave a comment

SAN MATEO, Calif., Feb. 4, 2021 — Unbxd Inc., a leading provider of AI-powered Commerce Search and Product Discovery solution today announced a collaboration with Google Cloud. As part of the collaboration, Unbxd will deliver its commerce search service, hosted on Google Cloud, to retail customers. Unbxd will also leverage Google Cloud’s advanced Search, Recommendations, and AI technologies to better enable product discovery for retail customers.

In order to transform and modernize digital commerce,  retailers are looking to deliver compelling customer experiences and accelerate transformation by leveraging new capabilities and services in a highly scalable and reliable infrastructure. They are looking to create shopper interactions with the online store in a way that is contextual, relevant, and personalized.

"We at Unbxd are delighted to collaborate with Google Cloud to offer AI-powered commerce search as a service, powered by Google Cloud AI technologies, to retail stores. Digital modernization has become a prime initiative for the retail segment. Our collaboration with Google Cloud will help rapidly deploy and offer an amazing customer journey, all the while empowering merchants to align creatively and easily with their business objectives," says Pavan Sondur, CEO and Co-Founder at Unbxd.

"Our collaboration with Google is a step towards accelerating our journey to that mission. Hosting our solution on Google cloud not only adds performance, security, and credibility to our solution but also differentiates it from the rest in the market. We are excited to work with Google in making eCommerce modernization a reality across the globe!"

"Retailers must have a deep understanding of each of their customers to earn and maintain their loyalty. We have a comprehensive list of production-ready solutions at Google Cloud Marketplace that enables enterprises to run their businesses with efficiency and ease. By working with Unbxd we are helping retail customers further take advantage of technologies to modernize and strengthen their eCommerce strategies," says Nirav Sheth, Director, ISV & Partner Sales, Google Cloud.

About Unbxd

Unbxd is an AI-driven eCommerce search platform that understands shoppers’ intent and connects them to the products they are most likely to buy — across purchase journeys. Unbxd powers search for more than 1300+ eCommerce sites across 40+ countries. The Unbxd product discovery solution is custom-built to be deployed across verticals such as Fashion, Healthcare, Pharma, Autoparts, Home Decor, B2B, and Mass Merchants. For more information, please visit unbxd.com or follow them on LinkedIn.

Contact
media@unbxd.com

Logo – https://mma.prnasia.com/media2/1000849/unbxdlogo_black_Logo.jpg?p=medium600

Related Links :

http://www.unbxd.com

PR Newswire

Guardforce AI Announces Acquisition of Handshake

Leave a comment

NEW YORK, Feb. 4, 2021 — Guardforce AI Co., Ltd (OTC Pink: GRDAF) ("Guardforce AI"), an integrated security solutions provider in Asia, announced today that it has acquired a majority stake in information security consultants Handshake Networking Ltd ("Handshake"), a Hong Kong-based company specializing in penetration testing.

Established in 2004, Handshake offers a wide variety of information security consultancy services, including penetration testing and vulnerability assessment, information systems audit, consultancy, computer forensics and security awareness training.

This acquisition follows a strategic partnership that Guardforce AI established in November 2020 to launch GFAI RECON "powered by" Handshake, a dedicated cyber risk assessment service to help small- and medium-sized enterprises, corporate clients, schools, hospitals and other companies identify and detect vulnerabilities in their networks.

Terence Yap, Chairman of Guardforce AI commented: "The acquisition of Handshake is part of Guardforce AI’s transformation journey towards providing customers in Asia-Pacific with premium technology-powered services. The proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices and the rise in popularity of online shopping and transactions has exponentially increased everyone’s need for better cybersecurity, so we are delighted to build on our existing successful strategic partnership with Handshake."

Handshake’s co-founder and Managing Consultant Richard Stagg commented, "We are very excited to be joining the Guardforce AI family. There are so many new threats to information systems every day, and so much work to do in countering them. As part of Guardforce AI, Handshake will have the resources to bring our expertise to new markets and new clients across the Asia-Pacific region, helping them to efficiently prepare robust protection and responses against cyber-attacks."

About Guardforce AI Co., Ltd.

Guardforce AI Co. Ltd. is a leading integrated security solutions provider that is trusted to protect and transport the high-value assets of public and private sector organizations. Developing and introducing innovative technologies that enhance safety and protection, Guardforce AI helps clients adopt new technologies and operate safely as the Asia Pacific business landscape evolves.

For more information, visit www.guardforcecash.co.th.

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements provide our current expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking statements include statements about our expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, intentions, assumptions and other statements that are not historical facts. Words or phrases such as "anticipate," "believe," "continue," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "ongoing," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "will" or similar words or phrases, or the negatives of those words or phrases, may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not necessarily mean that a statement is not forward-looking. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on reasonable assumptions we have made in light of our industry experience, perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. As you read and consider this press release you should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve risks, uncertainties (many of which are beyond our control) and assumptions, including the risks described in the reports and other documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of these assumptions prove incorrect or change, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement made by us in this press release speaks only as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

Related Links :

http://www.guardforcecash.co.th

Consumer Electronics, Lifestyle

Acer Malaysia Brings Fresh Air with acerpure Cool in Malaysia

Leave a comment

Announced late last year, the acerpure line up is bringing Acer into a new segment all together. The new line up comes at an opportune time as Malaysia has just extended its second MCO (Movement Control Order) for a further 2-weeks ending on 14th February. With the pandemic occurring the world over and Malaysians being mandated to spend more time at home, the issue of indoor air quality is becoming an increasing concern.

Acer’s acerpure Cool is looking to address that issue with cutting edge technologies that help purify and circulate indoor air more readily. The acerpure cool comes with a 3-in-1 HEPA filter which includes a pre-filter, activated carbon filter and a HEPA 13 main filter. This helps trap, eliminate and filter impurities in the air. The HEPA filter also traps up to 99.7% of particles as small as 0.3μm. In addition, the acerpure cool filters are silver ion (Ag+) coated filters which have been verified by third party labs to eliminate bacteria and mitigate H1N1 activity.

The air purifier has a simple, modern design which comes with an LED touch panel complete with child safety locks. It is able to give real time readings of indoor air quality with the built-in PM1.0 air quality sensor. Readings are indicated with a green, yellow and red LED indicator light corresponding to the density of particulate matter in the air. The acerpure cool will intelligently adjust its settings as the air quality changes to ensure that the overall room air quality remains intact. It is able to cool a 27m2 room in three minutes and functions silently (as low as 26dB).

Pricing & Availability

The acerpure cool is available starting on 5 February 2021 for MYR1,299 (USD$320.07) in dark grey and moon white.

Acer will be having a special introductory offer where the acerpure cool will be retailing MYR899 (USD$221.51) with an additional HEPA filter worth MYR199 (USD$49.03). The offer will be happening on LAZADA on 5 February 2021. After the one day promotion, the air purifier will be retailing at MYR999 (USD$246.22) with a free HEPA filter replacement worth MYR199 (USD$49.03) from February 6 to February 9 2021.

Computers, Contributed, Editorial

We’re in the Golden Age of Machine Learning, Tomorrow it will be Ubiquitous – Four Things We Need to Do Now

Leave a comment

Today, thanks in large part to the cloud, actions such as communicating over text or transferring funds digitally are so commonplace, we hardly even think about how incredible these processes are; as we enter the golden age of machine learning, we can expect a similar boom of benefits that previously seemed impossible.

Machine learning is already helping companies make better and faster decisions. In healthcare, the use of predictive models created with machine learning is accelerating research and discovery of new drugs and treatment regiments. In other industries, it’s helping remote villages of Southeast Africa gain access to financial services, and matching individuals experiencing homelessness with housing.

While the short term applications are encouraging, machine learning could potentially have an even greater impact on our society. In the future, machine learning will be intertwined and under the hood of almost every application, business process, and end-user experience. However, before this technology becomes so ubiquitous that it’s almost boring, there are four key barriers to adoption we need to clear first.

Democratizing machine learning

The only way that machine learning will truly scale is if we as an industry make it easier for everyone – regardless of their skill level or resources – to be able to incorporate this sophisticated technology into applications and business processes.

green and white lights
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

To achieve this, companies should take advantage of tools that have intelligence directly built into applications that their entire organization can benefit from. For instance, 123RF, a homegrown stock photography portal, aims to make design smarter, faster, and easier for users. To do so, it relies on Amazon Athena, Amazon Kinesis, and AWS Lambda for data pipeline processing. Its newer product Designs.ai Videomaker uses Amazon Polly to create voice-overs in more than 10 different languages. With AWS, 123RF has maintained flexibility in scaling its infrastructure and shortened product development cycles and is looking to incorporate other services to support its machine learning & AI research.

As processes go from being manual to automatic, workers are free to innovate and invent, and companies are empowered to be proactive instead of reactive. And as this technology becomes more intuitive and accessible, it can be applied to nearly every problem imaginable–from the toughest challenges in the IT department, to the biggest environmental issues in the world.

Upskilling workers

According to the World Economic Forum, the growth of AI could create 58 million net new jobs in the next few years. However, research suggests that there are currently only 300,000 AI engineers worldwide, and AI-related job postings are three times that of job searches with a widening divergence. Given this significant gap, organizations need to recognize that they simply aren’t going to be able to hire all the data scientists they need as they continue to implement machine learning into their work. Moreover, this pace of innovation will open doors and ultimately create jobs we can’t even begin to imagine today.

That’s why companies in the region like Asia Pacific University, DBS, Halodoc and others are finding innovative ways to encourage and nurture more young talents to gain new machine learning skills in fun, interactive hands-on ways, such as the AWS DeepRacer League. It’s critical that organizations should not only direct their efforts towards training the workforce they have with machine learning skills, but also invest in training programs that develop these important skills in the workforce of tomorrow.

Instilling trust in products

With anything new, often people are of two minds – either an emerging technology is a panacea and global savior, or it is a destructive force with cataclysmic tendencies. The reality is more often than not, a nuance somewhere in the middle. These disparate perspectives can be reconciled with information, transparency, and trust.

Photo by Arseny Togulev on Unsplash

As a first step, leaders in the industry need to help companies and communities learn about machine learning, how it works, where it can be applied, ways to use it responsibly, and understand what it is not.

Second, in order to gain faith in machine learning products, they need to be built by diverse groups of people across gender, race, age, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, culture, and education. We will all benefit from individuals who bring varying backgrounds, ideas, and points of view to inventing new machine learning products.

Third, machine learning services should be rigorously tested, measuring accuracy against third party benchmarks. Benchmarks should be established by academia, as well as governments, and be applied to any machine learning-based service, creating a rubric for reliable results, as well as contextualizing results for use cases.

Regulation of machine learning

Finally, as a society, we need to agree on what parameters should be put in place governing how and when machine learning can be used. With any new technology, there has to be a balance in protecting civil rights while also allowing for continued innovation and practical application of the technology.

small judge gavel placed on table near folders
Photo by Sora Shimazaki on Pexels.com

Any organization working with machine learning technology should be engaging customers, researchers, academics, and others to best determine the benefits of its machine learning technology with the potential risks. And they should be in active conversation with policymakers, supporting legislation, and creating their own guidelines for the responsible use of machine learning technology. Transparency, open dialogue, and constant evaluation must always be prioritized to ensure that machine learning is applied appropriately and is continuously enhanced.

What’s next

Through machine learning we’ve already accomplished so much, and yet, it’s still day one (and we haven’t even had a cup coffee yet!). If we’re using machine learning to help endangered orangutans, just imagine how it could be used to help save and preserve our oceans and marine life. If we’re using this technology to create digital snapshots of the planet’s forests in real-time, imagine how it could be used to predict and prevent forest fires. If machine learning can be used to help connect small-holder farmers to the people and resources they need to achieve their economic potential, imagine how it could help end world hunger.

To achieve this reality, we as an industry, have a lot of work ahead of us. I’m incredibly optimistic that machine learning will help us solve some of the world’s toughest challenges and create amazing end-user experiences we’ve never even dreamt. Before we know it, machine learning will be as familiar as reaching for our phones.

PR Newswire

Chunghwa Telecom Reports Un-Audited Consolidated Operating Results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year of 2020

Leave a comment

TAIPEI, Feb. 4, 2021 — Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. (TAIEX: 2412, NYSE: CHT) ("Chunghwa" or "the Company") today reported its un-audited operating results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2020. All figures were prepared in accordance with Taiwan-International Financial Reporting Standards ("T-IFRSs") on a consolidated basis.

(Comparisons throughout the press release, unless otherwise stated, are made with regard to the prior year period.)

Fourth Quarter 2020 Financial Highlights

  • Total revenue increased by 7.7% to NT$59.48 billion.
  • Domestic fixed communications revenue increased by 10.2% to NT$20.24 billion.
  • Mobile communications revenue increased by 2.0% to NT$24.96 billion.
  • Internet revenue increased by 18.3% to NT$9.72 billion.
  • International fixed communications revenue decreased by 18.5% to NT$ 2.14 billion.
  • Total operating costs and expenses increased by 11.3% to NT$50.30 billion.
  • Net income attributable to stockholders of the parent increased by 5.8% to NT$8.23
    billion.
  • Basic earnings per share (EPS) was NT$1.06.

Full Year 2020 Financial Highlights

  • Total revenue remained flat at NT$207.61 billion  
  • Domestic fixed communications revenue increased by 5.9% to NT$ 69.47 billion
  • Mobile communications revenue decreased by 5.5 % to NT$ 90.23 billion
  • Internet revenue increased by 5.5% to NT$ 32.12 billion
  • International fixed communications revenue decreased by 22.8 % to NT$ 8.70 billion
  • Total operating costs and expenses remained flat at NT$ 166.85 billion
  • Net income attributable to stockholders of the parent increased by 1.9 % to NT$
    33.42 billion.
  • Basic earnings per share (EPS) was NT$4.31

Mr. Chi-Mau Sheih, Chairman and CEO of Chunghwa Telecom, stated, "We are excited to end 2020 with strong operational and financial results. As we maintain our leading position in the mobile sector, we are pleased to report the number of 5G sign-ups had exceeded our annual target more quickly than anticipated. The launch of the iPhone 12 is also expected to bring 5G subscribers to adopt higher price plans. We remain dedicated to providing our clients with excellent connection and experiences by accelerating our buildout of 5G and develop 5G enterprise private network and other smart applications. We aim to build and accumulate more than 10,000 base stations by the end of 2021." 

"During the height of the pandemic, consumers and businesses had an increased need for top performance and advanced capabilities as network connectivity proved essential for work and entertainment. Thus, we saw the number of subscribers that signed up for higher connection speeds increase by double digits. Similarly, we expect the Tokyo Olympic Games and free-to-choose MOD package bundling to further enhance overall MOD revenue based on our current leading position. In addition, Chunghwa was the first operator in Taiwan to receive qualification as both an Azure Expert Managed Service Provider and AWS Managed Service Provider, marking a milestone for our ICT business. As our ICT revenue increased year-over-year, we will continue to enhance our ICT technologies and provide excellent service to our clients."

"Turning to 2021, we will continue to invest in our core business and enhance our capabilities through acquisitions, develop market-leading offerings to support our customers, and create sustainable value to our shareholders," Mr. Sheih concluded.

Revenue

Chunghwa Telecom’s total revenues for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 7.7% to NT$59.48 billion.

Domestic fixed revenue for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 10.2% year over year to NT$20.24 billion, mainly due to higher ICT project revenue. The local telephone service revenue decreased by 3.6% to NT$6.04 billion, primarily driven by the increased mobile and VoIP substitution.

Mobile communications revenue for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 2.0% to NT$24.96 billion, mainly due to the increase of smart device sales, which offset the decrease of mobile service revenue.

Internet business revenue for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 18.3% year over year to NT$9.72 billion.

International fixed communications revenue decreased by 18.5% to NT$2.14 billion.

Total revenue for the full year of 2020 remained flat at NT$207.61 billion.

Operating Costs and Expenses

Total operating costs and expenses for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 11.3% year over year to NT$50.30 billion, mainly due to higher ICT project costs and cost of goods sold.

Total operating costs and expenses for 2020 remained flat at NT$166.85 billion.

Operating Income and Net Income

Income from operations for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 5.7% to NT$10.50 billion. The operating margin was 17.7%, as compared to 18.0% in the same period of 2019. Net income attributable to stockholders of the parent increased by 5.8% to NT$8.23 billion. Basic earnings per share was NT$1.06.

Income from operations for 2020 increased by 4.2 % to NT$ 42.36 billion. The operating margin was 20.4%, compared to 19.6% for 2019. Net income attributable to stockholders of the parent increased by 1.9 % to NT$ 33.42 billion. Basic earnings per share was NT$4.31.

Cash Flow and EBITDA

Cash flow from operating activities for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 16.2% to NT$27.40 billion, which was mainly due to an increase of accounts payable.

Cash and cash equivalents, as of December 31st, 2020, decreased by 10.6% to NT$ 30.44 billion, as compared to that as of December 31st, 2019.

EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 6.1% to NT$19.89 billion. EBITDA margin was 33.44%, as compared to 33.94% in the same period of 2019.

EBITDA for 2020 increased by 3.8 % to NT$ 78.70 billion, and EBITDA margin was 37.91%, compared to 36.54% for 2019.

Capital Expenditure ("Capex")

Total Capex for the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 18.9% to NT$ 9.28 billion.

Business and Operational Highlights

Broadband/HiNet

The Company continued to execute its strategy of encouraging FTTx migration. As of December 31st, 2020, the number of FTTx subscribers reached 3.62 million, accounting for 83.3% of the Company’s total broadband users. Moreover, the number of subscribers signing up for speeds of 100Mbps or higher increased by 11.0% year over year, reaching 1.76 million. 

HiNet broadband subscribers decreased by 1.1% year over year to 3.58 million as of December 31st, 2020.

Mobile

As of December 31st, 2020, Chunghwa Telecom had 11.30 million mobile subscribers, representing a 6.1% year-over-year increase.

Fixed line

As of December 31st, 2020, the Company maintained its leading position in the fixed-line market, with a total of 9.90 million subscribers.

(in NT$ billion)

2020

2019

YoY%

Oct.-Dec.

Jan.-Dec.

Oct.-Dec.

Jan.-Dec.

Oct.-Dec.

Jan.-Dec.

Revenue

59.48

207.61

55.23

207.52

7.7

0.0

Operating costs and
expenses

50.30

166.85

45.20

166.74

11.3

0.1

Other income and
expense

1.32

1.60

-0.10

-0.13

1,437.2

1,353.1

Income from
Operations

10.50

42.36

9.93

40.65

5.7

4.2

Income before
Income Tax

10.42

42.84

10.00

41.75

4.2

2.6

Net income
attributable to
stockholders of the
parent

8.23

33.42

7.77

32.79

5.8

1.9

EBITDA

19.89

78.70

18.75

75.82

6.1

3.8

EPS(NT$)

1.06

4.31

1.00

4.23

5.8

1.9

2021 Guidance

For 2021, the Company expects total revenue to increase by 0.8~1.0%, to NT$209.26~NT$209.72 billion as compared to the un-audited consolidated total revenue of 2020. Operating costs and expenses are expected to increase by 0.4%~0.5%, to NT$167.58~NT$167.66 billion as compared to the prior year.  Income from operations is expected to decrease by -1.5%~0.4% to NT$41.72~NT$42.51 billion, year over year.

Income before income tax and net income attributable to stockholders of the parent are expected to be NT$42.08~NT$43.61 billion and NT$32.60~NT$34.09 billion, respectively. Basic earnings per share is expected to be NT$4.20~NT$4.40.

Acquisition of Material Assets in 2021 is expected to decrease by NT$26.83 billion to NT$44.32 billion as compared to the prior year.

(NT$ billion except EPS)

2021(F)

2020

(un-audited)

 change

YoY(%)

Revenue

209.26~209.72

207.61

1.65~2.11

0.8%~1.0%

Operating Costs and Expenses

167.58~167.66

166.85

0.73~0.81

0.4%~0.5%

Other Income and Expense

0.12~0.37

1.60

(1.48)~(1.23)

(92.5%)~(76.9%)

Income from Operations

41.72~42.51

42.36

(0.64)~0.15

(1.5%)~0.4%

Non-operating Income

0.36~1.10

0.48

(0.12)~0.62

(25%)~129.2%

Income before Income Tax

42.08~43.61

42.84

(0.76)~0.77

(1.8%)~1.8%

Net Income Attributable to
Stockholders of The Parent

32.60~34.09

33.42

(0.82)~0.67

(2.5%)~2.0%

EPS(NT$)

4.20~4.40

4.31

(0.11)~0.09

(2.5%)~2.0%

EBITDA

79.90~80.65

78.70

1.20~1.95

1.5%~2.5%

EBITDA Margin

38.2%~38.5%

37.9%

0.3%~0.6%

Acquisition of Material Assets

44.32

71.15

(26.83)

(37.7%)

    Mobile Broadband 
    Concession

–

47.37

(47.37)

(100.0%)

      Acquisition of Property, 
      Plant and Equipment and 
      Intangible Assets

43.15

23.60

19.55

82.8%

             Others

1.17

0.18

0.99

550.0%

Disposal of Material Assets

0.99

0.80

0.19

23.8%

Note 1: "Other income and expenses" includes gains (losses) on disposal of property, plant and equipment (PP&E) and investment property, and impairment loss on PP&E and investment property.
Note 2: The calculation of growth rates is based on NT$ thousand.

Financial Statements

Financial statements and additional operational data can be found on the Company’s website at http://www.cht.com.tw/en/home/cht/investors/financials/quarterly-earnings

NOTE CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Chunghwa’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. A number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Investors are cautioned that actual events and results could differ materially from those statements as a result of a number of factors including, but not limited to the risks outlined in Chunghwa’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Forms F-1, F-3, 6-K and 20-F, in each case as amended. The forward-looking statements in this press release reflect the current belief of Chunghwa as of the date of this press release and Chunghwa undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements for events or circumstances that occur subsequent to such date, except as required under applicable law.

This press release is not an offer of securities for sale in the United States. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration. Any public offering of securities to be made in the United States will be made by means of a prospectus that may be obtained from the issuer or selling security holder and that will contain detailed information about the company and management, as well as financial statements.

NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

To supplement the Company’s consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards pursuant to the requirements of the Financial Supervisory Commission, or T-IFRSs, Chunghwa Telecom also provides EBITDA, which is a "non-GAAP financial measure".  EBITDA is defined as consolidated net income (loss) excluding (i) depreciation and amortization, (ii) total net comprehensive financing cost (which is comprised of net interest expense, exchange gain or loss, monetary position gain or loss and other financing costs and derivative transactions), (iii) other income, net, (iv) income tax, (v) (income) loss from discontinued operations.

In managing the Company’s business, Chunghwa Telecom relies on EBITDA as a means of assessing its operating performance because it excludes the effect of (i) depreciation and amortization, which represents a non-cash charge to earnings, (ii) certain financing costs, which are significantly affected by external factors, including interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates and inflation rates, which have little or no bearing on our operating performance, (iii) income tax (iv) other expenses or income not related to the operation of the business. 

CAUTIONS ON USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

In addition to the consolidated financial results prepared under T-IFRSs, Chunghwa Telecom also provide non-GAAP financial measures, including "EBITDA". The Company believes that the non-GAAP financial measures provide investors with another method for assessing its operating results in a manner that is focused on the performance of its ongoing operations.

Chunghwa Telecom’s management believes investors will benefit from greater transparency in referring to these non-GAAP financial measures when assessing the Company’s operating results, as well as when forecasting and analyzing future periods. However, the Company recognizes that:

  • these non-GAAP financial measures are limited in their usefulness and should be considered only as a supplement to the Company’s T-IFRSs financial measures;
  • these non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, the Company’s T-IFRSs financial measures;
  • these non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered to be superior to the Company’s T-IFRSs financial measures; and
  • these non-GAAP financial measures were not prepared in accordance with T-IFRSs and investors should not assume that the non-GAAP financial measures presented in this earnings release were prepared under a comprehensive set of rules or principle.   

Further, these non-GAAP financial measures may be unique to Chunghwa Telecom, as they may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. As such, this presentation of non-GAAP financial measures may not enhance the comparability of the Company’s results to the results of other companies. Readers are cautioned not to view non-GAAP results as a substitute for results under T-IFRSs, or as being comparable to results reported or forecasted by other companies.

About Chunghwa Telecom

Chunghwa Telecom (TAIEX 2412, NYSE: CHT) ("Chunghwa" or "the Company") is Taiwan’s largest integrated telecommunications services company that provides fixed-line, mobile, broadband, and internet services. The Company also provides information and communication technology services to corporate customers with its big data, information security, cloud computing and IDC capabilities, and is expanding its business into innovative technology services such as IoT, AI, etc. In recent years, Chunghwa has been actively involved in corporate social responsibility and has won domestic and international awards and recognition. For more information, please visit our website at www.cht.com.tw

Related Links :

http://www.cht.com.tw

PR Newswire

Datawords and Whatsquare reinvent the customer relationship and the role of sales associates in a post-COVID world

Leave a comment

HONG KONG, Feb. 4, 2021 — Datawords, the global leader in Multicultural Technologies, is proud to launch its new e-Sales Connect platform, designed to reinvent the role of sales associates and improve the customer experience online. Developed by its Whatsquare team in Hong Kong and based on an AI-powered customization engine, this new solution allows brands to better connect their online and offline ecosystems while empowering sales associates at brick-and-mortar stores, by offering the ability to provide personalized services to customers through messaging.

With the world of retail durably transformed by the impact of COVID-19 and changing behavioral patterns, the platform developed by Datawords / Whatsquare creates a direct link between a store-based brand expert and an existing or potential consumer at the onset of their online journey. As such, it’s an effective way for stores and corners to generate online traffic and vice versa.

In the context of restrained movements in many geographies, and of consumers reluctant to spend too much time in stores, the platform allows brands to optimize and leverage the expertise of their salesforce, thus extending and enhancing their advisory role through technology.

Specifically, the innovative platform built by Datawords / Whatsquare creates a bridge between physical stores and e-commerce, extending and enriching the shopping experience by allowing the customer to ask questions and the salesperson to propose adapted promotions and services—dependent only on the consumer’s engagement with the brand on social media (WeChat, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Instagram, etc.).

Based on a user’s location, the platform is able to suggest a nearby point of sale and link them to the salespeople in store, via a QR code system. The latter can then make customized purchase proposals by referring the consumer to an e-commerce site.

E-Sales Connect: our latest innovation to enhance customer service
E-Sales Connect: our latest innovation to enhance customer service

The platform has already been implemented with great success by Datawords / Whatsquare for major brands including BMW, L’Oreal, and L’Occitane.

Katherine Pei, co-founder of Whatsquare, explains: "We are very proud to add this new e-Sales Connect platform to our set of tailor–made multilingual solutions that enable data flows and conversational commerce between all messaging platforms, websites, mobile applications and now retail stores. Designed for retailers, our platform delivers personalized and enhanced customer service thanks to the combination of technology and expertise from the sales associates."

"In the current environment, our platform helps to animate points of sale while reinforcing the online/offline link and offering a practical solution to customers who wish to limit the length of their shopping trips while still benefiting from expert advice. On our side, we take care of the creation and maintenance of the platform, which is easy to roll out and duplicate. We are convinced of the potential of this solution, which has started to be implemented in Asia and can be applied to any type of retail store (from luxury to car distribution), anywhere in the world," adds Christophe Jourdain, Asia General Manager at Datawords.

About Whatsquare

Whatsquare creates tailor–made multilingual solutions that enable data flows and conversational commerce between all messaging platforms (including Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, LINE, and WeChat for different regions), websites and mobile applications. Designed for retailers and brands, it automatically recommends products, provides customer service and delivers personalized stories. Whatsquare was co-founded in 2016 by Katherine Pei and Leeds Sheung and acquired by the Datawords Group in November 2019. Based in Hong Kong, the company is deploying its technology for international brands across APAC regions. More info on www.whatsquare.com/en/.

About Datawords

Created in 2000, Datawords combines a mastery of local cultures with technological expertise to roll out international strategies for major global brands across all digital platforms. Headed by a team of co-founders, Datawords has a presence in Europe, Asia and America. The group offers unmatched proficiency in multicultural technologies and stands out from the pack with the exceptional diversity of its 800 employees, representing over 50 nationalities and more than 60 languages. Datawords recorded a €70M turnover in 2019. The Datawords Group continues to grow with ground-breaking companies like Vanksen, Wezen, 87 Seconds and Whatsquare.

Learn more about the Datawords Group at www.datawordsgroup.com and on LinkedIn.

generated by system

Contact:
Raphaële Coulot-Brette
raphaele.coulot-brette@grayling.com

Related Links :

Home

PR Newswire

Damstra Technology establishes Advisory Board to accelerate growth in North America

Leave a comment

Damstra’s Advisory Board established to help identify business development opportunities and accelerate organic growth in North America.

MELBOURNE, Australia, Feb. 4, 2021 — Damstra Holdings, Ltd., today announced the establishment of a North American advisory Board to include senior executives from the technology, mining, and energy industries.

Foundational Board members Tim Davis, Ray Gogel, Pam Saxton, and Ray Schiavone bring more than 120 years of experience and extensive industry connections in Damstra’s most significant growth market.

Mr Johannes Risseeuw, Executive Chairman of Damstra, said, "Establishing a North American Advisory Board is the next major step in executing on our growth strategy for the region. We are intensely focused on scaling our business in North America, and the Advisory Board members’ deep expertise and extensive connections will be invaluable in helping us achieve this ambition."

The Advisory Board members will be appointed for an initial two-year term from 1 March 2021.

Damstra North American Advisory Board members:

Tim Davis is a senior technology executive with more than 30 years’ experience in developing business transformation and growth strategies for global technology companies including Workday, Adobe and PeopleSoft. He was employed by the co-founders of Workday, the $60 billion market capitalisation NASDAQ-listed software company, as the Company’s first Account Executive. He led the development of major accounts and brought several key products to market, helping to grow Workday’s customer base to more than 4,000 with annual revenues to over USD$3.6 billion.

Ray Gogel is a recognized leader in the utility and energy markets for the application of disruptive technologies to drive transformation and growth programs. He has received many awards in the US for innovation, transformation, and leadership, and currently leads Avanti Enterprises, a utility and energy consultancy. Previously he co-founded US Grid Company LLC, a New York-headquartered firm focused on transforming the United States’ power grid, was a Board member of Bridge Energy Group, and worked for leading global players in the utility and energy sectors such as Accenture, Nokia Siemens and IBM.

Pam Saxton has more than 35 years’ experience within public and private mining, technology and money transfer organizations, including publicly listed companies in the US and Canada. She is currently a Board Member of Canadian listed resource companies Aquila Resources Inc. and Bunker Hill Mining Corporation, the latter where she is Chair of the Audit Committee. She was previously on the Board of NASDAQ, Toronto Stock Exchange and Frankfurt Stock Exchange listed Pershing Gold Corporation and brings deep experience in corporate governance, compliance, and corporate finance.

Ray Schiavone is an experienced business leader and successful entrepreneur including more than 20 years as President & CEO of several successful technology companies. He is currently Managing Director of Ranch View Technologies LLC, a technology-focused advisory firm based in Denver, Colorado, and serves on the Boards of several technology-focused companies. He was previously CEO of Quark Software, President and CEO of Arbortext Inc. and spent 14 years at General Electric where he held leadership positions throughout the United States and Europe. Ray has also served as founder, investor, advisor, and board member of several entrepreneurial businesses creating more an $1bn in shareholder value.

About Damstra Technology:

Damstra is an Australian headquartered provider of integrated workplace management solutions to multiple industry segments across the globe.

The Company develops subscription-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions in industries where compliance and safety are of importance.

These solutions help clients better track, manage, and protect their staff, contractors, and organizations while reducing the risk associated with worker health, safety, and regulatory compliance.

Damstra Technology has been operating since 2002 and has grown from providing an Australian mining contractor management solution to an integrated workplace management solution with a client base in international markets.

https://www.damstratechnology.com/

Follow Damstra Technology: Facebook, LinkedIn

Related Links :

https://www.damstratechnology.com

PR Newswire

Aniview Partners with White Ops to Fend Off Sophisticated Bot Attacks and Safeguard the Integrity of Video Advertising

Leave a comment

Partnership Delivers New Avenue for Publishers and Advertising Networks to Protect their Inventory with White Ops Advertising Integrity via Aniview’s Platform

SINGAPORE, Feb. 4, 2021 — Aniview, a leading provider of holistic end-to-end ad-serving solutions for publishers, announced a new partnership with White Ops, the global leader in collective protection against sophisticated bot attacks and fraud. Aniview’s platform will fully integrate the White Ops Advertising Integrity solution to help optimize protection and ensure its customers’ safety from malicious and sophisticated cybersecurity risks. As a result of this partnership, publishers and advertising networks have another avenue by which they can access White Ops protection for their inventory.

The most common types of video fraud occur when malicious fraudsters misrepresent their display units as video inventory in programmatic exchanges. These sophisticated bots are deployed through malware embedded in software, essentially performing device-hijacking on a mass, organized scale. With the significant dangers ad fraud poses to the video supply chain, safety has become an increasingly critical issue and, as such, dangers are being met with innovative solutions.

White Ops recently became the first company to receive accreditation from the Media Rating Council (MRC) for end-to-end coverage against Sophisticated Invalid Traffic (SIVT) for desktop, mobile web, mobile in-app, and Connected TV (CTV). Working directly with the largest internet platforms, DSPs, and exchanges, White Ops verifies the humanity of more than 10 trillion digital interactions per week. With White Ops Advertising Integrity, platforms can tap into the most comprehensive pre-bid prevention and post-bid detection capabilities to verify the validity of advertising efforts across all channels. The White Ops Fraud Mitigation Platform uses a multilayered detection methodology to spot and stop sophisticated bots and fraud by using technical evidence, continuous adaptation, machine learning, and threat intelligence.

With this partnership, Aniview and its customers can leverage White Ops’ privacy-sensitive detection technology to identify threats and automated fraud attempts, ensuring their advertising inventory can be trusted and fraud-free. White Ops provides a deeper granular understanding of bot interactions and activity patterns to save time and money. Aniview is now able to provide its clients an effective solution to identify and prevent malicious video-bot traffic. This partnership represents the next step in Aniview’s mission to provide verified traffic and protection against video ad fraud.

Aniview’s end-to-end ad-serving solution includes a patented video ad-player, mobile apps SDK, seamless header bidding integration, high-performance ad-server, marketplace, CTV/OTT dynamic auction, and Server-side Ad Insertion (SSAI). Together, these components, coupled with the company’s machine-learning optimization algorithm, enable its users to manage, track, and monetize video content. Unlike other solutions, Aniview allows for customizable ad units alongside real-time yield optimization and currently services more than 10 billion video ad impressions each month. In September, the company was awarded the TAG Certified Against Fraud Seal, from the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG).

"The boom of online video content in recent years has created an urgency for us to fully secure and protect customers against a rising tide of ad fraud," says Roy Cohen, CTO of Aniview. "Working with White Ops and our internal fraud detection tools, we will develop greater application integrity by identifying and blocking bot traffic with the highest degree of accuracy and speed to stay ahead of adversaries."

"Fighting fraud and abuse in digital advertising requires a collective approach to protect the industry against sophisticated threats," says Ellie Windle, Vice President, Global Strategic Partnerships and Alliances at White Ops. "We’re excited to join together with Aniview in the optimization of fraud-free video advertising solutions. This partnership strengthens our presence in digital video while providing easier access to our platform for publishers and networks. The more partners that we have in this fight, the bigger our knowledge base grows and the better we can optimize our tactics against potential new threats from bad actors."

About Aniview

Founded in 2013, Aniview provides a full ecosystem for managing video and video advertisements through its patented technology. Our goal is to change the video advertising landscape and have premium publishers, networks, and advertisers globally use our suite of products and enjoy an end-to-end solution. Our offering includes a reliable platform for video hosting and monetization (made up of an Adserver, Players, SDK and Marketplace) which allows our partners to widen the reach of their services with versatile and customizable marketing tools that suit their business needs. For more info https://www.aniview.com/

About White Ops

White Ops is a cybersecurity company that collectively protects global enterprises and internet platforms from digital fraud and abuse. We verify the humanity of more than 10 trillion interactions per week protecting our customers’ sensitive data, reputation, compliance, bottom line, and customer experience as they grow their digital business. To learn more visit www.whiteops.com.

Media contact:

Virginie Cosentino
virginie@budcomms.com
+65-9161-5091

Related Links :

http://www.whiteops.com

PR Newswire

Soprano Design Launches First Whole of Government Communications Platform as a Service

Leave a comment

SYDNEY, Feb. 4, 2021 — Soprano Design, a global leader in CPaaS (Communications Platform as a Service), announced today its Whole of Government communication solution tuned specifically to meet the needs of large government messaging and capable of spanning across multiple government departments and agencies to become the platform of choice.

The Australia-hosted platform is dedicated for government communications and will be available to Australia government agencies starting March 1, with plans to expand hosting into select countries globally during 2021.

For the first time, governments can consolidate their existing G2C (government-to-citizen) services onto a single communications platform to better engage with their citizens.

"As governments increasingly compete for citizen’s attention and trust, there’s an increasingly pressing need for siloed government departments to band together to leverage more powerful communication technology, allowing them to roll out more engaging programs and to communicate in ways that build trust," said Dr. Richard Favero, CEO and Chairman at Soprano. "This is truly the next frontier in government communications, because as citizens, we want to be engaged with our government and we increasingly expect our government services to provide us with more thoughtful and trustworthy information. Enterprises already know that mobile messaging now offers powerful interactive ways of building this trust, and we’re grateful we can begin to help governments with their mission to engage in meaningful ways with citizens."

Additional solution features include:

  • Available on the Australian Digital Marketplace – making it convenient for organizations to begin including sophisticated communications in their digital transformation process
  • Capabilities for the entire government body or on a dedicated individual department basis
  • Expertly secured and capable of being locally hosted for each corresponding government
  • A vast menu of off-the-shelf internal communications and intra-department applications, including a secure IP messaging capability with encryption and Common Criteria certification

The past year has made government officials worldwide acutely aware how every branch of their organization needs to send trusted communications as emergency scenarios of 2020 disrupted the status quo of proper and effective messaging. Given the shift of accelerated digital transformation in this sector, governments are reassessing how they can utilize common communication channels such as SMS, voice, email, WhatsApp and RCS to inform citizens regarding important announcements, daily appointments and reminders. This digital transformation pushes the confines and limitations of traditional approaches by government communication.

Soprano is a global enabler of government services worldwide and already powers some of the world’s largest government organizations’ communications needs. Soprano’s expansive services include integrating with applications commonly used in social services, tax, voting and tax organisations but also with postal services, utilities, healthcare and mental health services, education programs, tourism, and more. Specific government services enabled by Soprano depend on the region needs.

Soprano’s omnichannel enterprise mobile messaging platform helps government agencies around the world. The platform’s omnichannel capabilities give governments the ability to transform the way they interact and reach communities across all departments such as finance, transportation, public health, education and security.

The platform also offers a powerful secure IP messaging capability that can integrate with government services, allowing organizations to offer G2C secure mobile messaging in adherence with applicable compliance laws.

Soprano’s trusted mobile communication platform adheres to recommended best practices to provide a secure mobile messaging solution that can become part of a proactive IT security program, designed to minimise the risks and costs associated with service disruptions.

For more information on our government solutions, please visit: https://www.sopranodesign.com/solutions/government-mobile-messaging/.

ENDS

 

Related Links :

https://www.sopranodesign.com/

PR Newswire

CUBRID launches CUBRID 11, Open Source DBMS for OLTP

Leave a comment

SEOUL, South Korea, Feb. 4, 2021 — CUBRID is pleased to announce the release of CUBRID 11, the latest stable version of the CUBRID DB engine.

The CUBRID 11 focuses on performance improvement, new features adding, and security and convenience enhancement. In the meantime, CUBRID 11.0 license has been changed from GPL to Apache License 2.0, while CUBRID 10.2 or lower versions still adopt GPL v2 or higher license.

The main features of the newly released CUBRID 11 version are as follows:

  • Security Enhancement: By providing data encryption and packet encryption, CUBRID 11 improves security. This version prevents abnormal data loss by supporting table-based TDE (Transparent Data Encryption) and packet encryption between the driver and server.
  • Feature Enhancement: This version supports hash scan and improves the performances by up to 10 times in join query that could not perform index scans. By supporting the cache of search query results through hints, data change is minimal, and the performance of the workload with complex queries is maximized.
  • Administrator Convenience Enhancement: This version supports statement-based replication through hints on the HA environment, improving the replication time when deleting and updating a large amount of data. By separating the Java SP server from the DB server, the influence of the DB server is minimized from the start/stop of the Java SP server. In addition, the DDL audit function is provided so that DDL change can be tracked.
  • SQL Extension: This version extends various useful SQL functions such as RVC (Row Value Constructor) and REGEXP functions.

Along with features and performance enhancement, this new version has also expanded the license openness by changing the DB engine license to Apache license 2.0. Developers and users can use the CUBRID source code without any restrictions through this license change. CUBRID is looking forward to improving their product performance and strengthening their market competitiveness with the open source culture’s value and philosophy persistently.  

CUBRID 11.0 is available to download at www.cubrid.org/downloads.

About CUBRID

With the value of openness, sharing and participation, CUBRID is an open source DBMS company that provides massive data processing capacity and management convenience while assuring high performance, stability, scalability, and high availability.

Since the relational DBMS CUBRID had changed to open-source software in 2008, it has accumulated more than 300,000 downloads globally; 1,200 DB instances have been in services in more than 800 systems. For more information, please visit https://www.cubrid.org/.