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Huawei's US$10B hit; Australia on live streaming; Xiaomi's consumer lending biz

TOP NEWS

* Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. anticipates its consumer business revenue to drop by around US$10 billion this year due to an impact of the U.S. decision to ban the company from purchasing U.S. components such as semiconductors, London's Financial Times reported. While the U.S. Commerce Department recently confirmed that it was granting an additional 90 days for Huawei to buy supplies from American companies, Huawei termed the extension "meaningless" saying that the company and its employees are ready to carry on despite the U.S. sanctions.

* Australia will set up a 24/7 Crisis Coordination Center to monitor online activities and weed out extreme violence or terrorist material, Reuters reported. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said measures are being taken to deny terrorists the opportunity to glorify their crimes. Australia is also considering legislation to force digital platforms to improve the safety of their services.

* Xiaomi Corp. is set to enter the consumer lending business in India with its Mi Credit offering set to debut in the coming weeks, Reuters reported. Xiaomi's new credit service will offer loans of up to 100,000 Indian rupees with interest rates starting at 1.8%. The Chinese company is looking to leverage its dominating position in India's smartphone market to penetrate into the country's financial services sector.

JAPAN

* Japanese music company Avex Inc. teamed up with Migu Music, a Chinese music distribution platform under Chinese state-owned telecom company China Mobile Communications Corp. Under the deal, Avex will provide about 30,000 songs and 3,000 music videos to Migu Music.

* Troubled iPhone screen manufacturer Japan Display Inc. is set to receive a ¥50 billion capital injection from Suwa Investment Holdings, CEO Winston Lee confirmed, according to The Nikkei.

SOUTH KOREA

* LG U+ confirmed that it will provide its long-term evolution and 5G networks to KB Kookmin Bank's upcoming mobile virtual network operator services, ET News reported. A source from the telco said that the company is currently in the process of closing the deal with a plan to announce final details in September.

* KT Corp. applied battery-saving technology, C-DRX, to its nationwide 5G networks, adding up to 4 hours and 21 minutes to the battery utilization time, ZDNet Korea reported.

* NAVER Corp. officially launched its artificial intelligence-powered keyboard application Smartboard after two years of beta service period, Financial News reported. The application includes search, translation, frequently used phrases, spell check, optical character recognition functions among others, and provides Korean, English and Japanese keyboards.

CHINA, HONG KONG AND TAIWAN

* HKBN Ltd., through a wholly owned unit, agreed to fully acquire system integrator and IT solutions provider Jardine OneSolution Holdings (C.I.) Ltd. from JTH (BVI) Ltd. for US$50 million in cash. The acquisition also includes JOS subsidiaries Adura Hong Kong and Adura Cyber Security.

* South Africa-based Naspers Ltd. received shareholders' approval to list its international internet assets as Prosus on the Euronext Amsterdam on Sept. 11. Prosus will comprise all of Naspers' internet interests outside of South Africa including Chinese conglomerate Tencent Holdings Ltd., Cyprus-headquartered Mail.ru Group Ltd. and U.S.-based OLX Inc.

* Google LLC said it disabled 210 channels on YouTube LLC after it discovered that they behaved in a coordinated manner while uploading videos related to the Hong Kong protests. In a blog post, Shane Huntley, who leads Google's Threat Analysis Group, said the company found the use of VPNs and other methods to disguise the origin of these accounts.

* Huawei officially rolled out its artificial intelligence processor, Ascend 910, along with an all-scenario AI computing framework, MindSpore.

* Xiaomi Technology added telecom services to its business registration, according to TianYanCha. The company is now registered for a wide range of businesses including TV program production, advertising and marketing, ticketing services and conference organization.

INDIA AND SOUTH ASIA

* Google LLC is launching Nest Hub in India on Aug. 26, The Economic Times (India) reported. The device is expected to come with an in-built Google Assistant and it will allow users to personalize their schedules, commute and reminders with voice match.

* The proposed optic fiber joint venture between Bharti Airtel Ltd. and Vodafone Idea Ltd. has been put on "hold" due to the divergent funds requirements of the two telcos, The Economic Times (India) reported. While Airtel has reduced its debt to manageable levels, Vodafone Idea needs to monetize its fiber network assets quickly to get rid of massive financial pressure.

* Hyde Park Entertainment is introducing a new division, Hyde Park Entertainment Asia, which will focus on producing high profile film and TV projects created by Indian and Asian filmmakers, Television Post reported.

SOUTHEAST ASIA

* France-based online game creator Ubisoft Entertainment SA launched an official YouTube channel in Thailand, Manager Online reported. The channel will feature video clips with Thai subtitles and dubbing, as well as weekly Thailand-specific content.

* Thailand's Ministry of Digital Economy and Society will seek cabinet approval of the merger of state-owned telcos CAT Telecom PCL and TOT PCL in September, The Bangkok Insight reported. The ministry has affirmed that the consolidation will not result in mass terminations of employment.

* Thailand's National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission plans to impose fees directly on over-the-top media providers, Prachachat reported. The commission said that taxing these providers would instead put a financial burden on consumers.

* Henky Prihatna, the country head of Google Indonesia, is leaving the company to join Singapore's Northstar Advisors Pte. Ltd. in October, KrASIA reported.

AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

* New Zealand-based Chorus Ltd. announced that the company's CEO and managing director, Kate McKenzie, will resign and return to Australia at the end of 2019, bizEDGE reported.

FEATURED NEWS

Data Dispatch: Viacom, CBS chiefs stand to reap big rewards post-merger: The heads of Viacom Inc. and CBS Corp. both stand to cash in on the pending merger of the two companies, propelling them up the ranks of the most highly compensated U.S. media network bosses.

Data Dispatch: 'Angel Has Fallen' could fall flat as horror 'Ready or Not' scares up profit: Two films will drop over the weekend of Aug. 23. While the newest installment in the "Fallen" franchise is expected to lead the box office, it could have a hard time finding profitability during a tough summer season.

FEATURED RESEARCH

Economics of Advertising: Large markets, digital spur outdoor/out-of-home growth in Q2: Strength in large markets, digital deployment and robust ad demand from national advertisers could maintain the high single-digit growth momentum in third quarter 2019 for the three public outdoor groups.

Nozomi Ibayashi, Myungran Ha, Emily Lai, Ed Eduard and Wil Hathaway contributed to this report. The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 7 a.m. Hong Kong time. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.