Taiwan: Bandwidth, Connection, and Access—Analyzing the Business Models of Webcasters in Taiwan

The cable television penetration is 80% (GO, 2005). The cable subscribers can receive almost 100 channels by paying less than $600 in New Taiwan (NT) dollars or around $18 per month (in U.S. dollars). The cable TV industry has been trying to provide video on demand (GOD) since the mid-1990s, but has not succeeded. Interestingly, it is webcasting service that has provided GOD first. Most satellite TV channels are privately owned. There are 54 domestic and 14 foreign companies offering 128 satellite channels in Taiwan (GO, 2005). More than 100 channels compete for cable TV subscribers; most of the subscribers receive more than 90 channels, including domestic channels and such foreign channels as NHK, Jet TV from Japan, HBO, Disney, and Discovery from the United States.