ASE to Develop Camera Modules for Taiwanese Handset Industry
November 18, 2005
Taiwanese ASE announced on November 15 that it will partner with E-Pin, Sunnytec, and Tricore to develop camera modules for use in mobile phones. The companies will invest NT$210 million in the project, which will focus on auto-focus functionality and optical zoom lenses among other things. The Taiwanese Department of Industrial Technology, which belongs to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, announced on the same day that it will subsidize the project, as it is aimed at improving the supply of locally produced camera module components to the mobile phone industry. Currently, Taiwanese camera modules for the mobile phone industry are less advanced than those in other countries, and improvement in camera module supply is considered by the government and the industry as a critical part of maintaining the Taiwanese mobile phone industry's competitiveness. ASE expects to start supplying the new modules in the first half of 2006, and maximum production capacity will be around one million units per month.