TOPNEWS
* The South Korean Fair Trade Commission is unit over allegedanti-competitive practices related to its Android operating system. The antitrustregulator is running a probe to determine whether Google forced smartphonemanufacturers to install the Android OS in their handsets.
* DalianWanda Group Corp. Ltd.'s Legendary Entertainment the rights to a Pokémon film andwill work with NintendoCorp.'s The Pokémon Company to produce a "DetectivePikachu" movie with which to launch a live-action film franchise.Toho Company Ltd.will manage the film's distribution in Japan, while will distribute itoutside of the country.
* ChinaUnicom's IPTV service has been accused of committing film piracy byshowing movies that were not officially brought to the Chinese market, SinaNews reports.The state-owned telco has not yet commented on the matter, but if theallegations are true China Unicom may face intellectual property infringementlawsuits.
PAN-ASIANNEWS
* A new Asia-Africa-Europe subsea cable system waslaid by international telco Ooredoo, Global Telecoms Business reports.The 25,000-km AAE-1 submarine cable will connect Qatar to the internet hubs ofthree continents, including those in Hong Kong, Vietnam,Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, , India and Pakistan,giving users in the countries more reliable bandwidth and high-speed globalrouting.
* SoftBank Group Corp. is teaming up with Honda Motor Co.to develop cars that can read drivers' emotions and converse with them, Reutersreports.It is the telecom and internet company's latest move into artificialintelligence after the announced acquisition this week of U.K. chip designerARM Holdings plc. SoftBank chairman Masayoshi Son told an event in Tokyo thatHonda cars will be able to interact with drivers through cloud-based technologybased on SoftBank's Pepper humanoid robot.
* Japan's government is warning about potentialtraffic accidents, thefts and other problems ahead of the hotly anticipatedJapanese launch of Nintendo Co.Ltd.'s "Pokémon Go" augmented reality game. Thegovernment's chief spokesman said at apress conference that he wants gamers to follow nine guidelinesissued by a national safety agency that include avoiding dangerous locations,vigilance against heatstroke and carrying extra batteries.
* South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure andTransport signed a memorandum of understanding with Korean IT company KakaoCorp. to share geographical mapping data, the Kyunghyang Shinmun reports.The ministry previously avoided disclosing the data for national securityreasons, but decided to provide the information to MoU partners with securitymeasures considered up to par. Kakao reportedly plans to use the data for 3Dmaps.
* DeNACo. Ltd., a Japanese online and mobile services company, and YamatoTransport Co. Ltd. announcedthey are jointly developing a door-to-door parcel delivery service that usesdriverless vehicles. The companies plan a one-year trial launch of the servicein March 2017 in government-designated deregulated zones.
* SoftBank Group is launching a tie-up with Japaneseinsurer Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. to provide wearable devices that measurehealthy living data, The Nikkei reports.SoftBank will provide the technology that encourages healthy habits such aswalking, and the top group in a five-tier ranking could receive 20% to 30%discounts on premiums the following year.
, HONG KONG ANDTAIWAN
* LeSports HK and PCCW Ltd.'s pay TV provider Now TV secured the rights tobroadcast the English Premier League in Hong Kong, Rapid TV News reports.All 380 English Premier League football matches for the next three years willbe broadcasted live in HD through both companies' respective platforms.
* Hackers got into Baidu Inc.'s system and stole hundreds of accountdetails, Sina News reports.The details stolen from the Chinese web services company are reportedly fromspecial accounts for promotional use, giving the hackers access to uploadinformation or tag words that normally may be censored and controlled. Theseaccounts do not need to go through the 24-hour screening process that isusually required for document uploads or tagging.
* Chinese conglomerate boughtWolverhampton Wanderers, an English soccer club, Variety reports.The takeover sees 100% of the club's shares and assets transferred fromBridgemere Group to Fosun in deal reportedly estimated at US$59 million.
* Baidu has been accused of selling onlineadvertisement space to gambling websites, which is illegal in China, Yicai reports. The ads have beenappearing only late at night, and police are investigating the matter. Baiduposts approximately 470 million ads a day, equivalent to 5,000 per second.
* General Electric announced a partnership withChinese telecommunications equipment and smartphone company to workon productivity-boosting equipment and machines, Tech Huanqiu reports. GEconcurrently opened a startup incubator in Shanghai with a value of US$11 million.
SOUTHEASTASIA
* Malaysianover-the-top platform iflix secured exclusive rights to show the second season ofthe American techno-thriller series "Mr. Robot" in Southeast Asia.New episodes of the USA Network series will premiere Thursdays on iflix, within24 hours of the initial U.S. broadcast.
* Indonesiantelco PT Hutchison 3 Indonesia (H3I) is partnering with Norwegian web browsercompany Opera SoftwareASA to launch the online app store TriXogo, Majalah ICT reports.TriXogo allows users to use apps and games that are free from advertisementsand have a minimum rating of four stars.
* Thailand's two state-owned telecom enterprises,TOT Plc andCAT Telecom Plc, willnot be merged, the Bangkok Post reports,citing the country's information and communication technology minister.Instead, the two telcos will reportedly consolidate similar core businessesinto subsidiaries or joint ventures to ensure their survival.
* Philippines-based Globe Telecom activated500 cell sites in the Visayas and Mindanao regions using the 2,600 MHz band itobtained from the joint buyout of San Miguel's telco assets. Aside from the2,600 MHz frequency, Globe is also rolling out a 700 MHz spectrum in differentlocations of the country.
* Grab, a Southeast Asian taxi-hailing app, announceda partnership with Alibaba GroupHolding Ltd.'s e-payment platform Alipay, Thai newspaper Krungthep Turakij reports. Thepartnership will allow Chinese visitors to Thailand and Singapore to pay forGrab rides in Chinese yuan instead of local currencies.
* KeppelT&T, a Singapore-based data center operator, has clinched overS$144 million in contracts at two of its data centers, Keppel DC Singapore 3and Keppel DC Singapore 4, accordingto the Singapore Business Review.Keppel DC Singapore 4, which also won contracts for co-location, remains ontrack for completion this year.
* Omise, a Thailand-based e-payment gateway, announced it obtainedUS$17.5 million in funding from Sinar Mas Digital Ventures, Ascend Money,Golden Gate Ventures and other undisclosed partners. According to the company'sblog, this financing will be used for product development and expansion intoother Asian countries.
* Malaysia-based telco saw an increase of its 4GLTE subscribers by 84% to reach 3.5 million users, Free Malaysia Today reports.In a filing to the stock exchange, the company stated that it would invest over1.3 billion Malaysian ringgit this year to improve network connections.
* Smart Postman, an app allowing postal deliveryworkers to collect data on the infrastructure conditions of the areas they passthrough, will be launched in Malaysia next month, according tothe Daily Express. The MalaysianCommunication and Multimedia Commission will use the collected data to measurethe effectiveness of wireless communication signals in rural areas of thecountry.
AND NEW ZEALAND
* The Australian Olympic Committee has soughtinjunctive relief against telco giant Telstra Corp. Ltd. for advertising about the SummerOlympics in Rio de Janeiro when it does not have an AOC license to promote theOlympic Games, ZDNet reports.Telstra was reportedly a sponsor of the Games from 1990 to 2012, untilOptus Pty Ltd.replaced it last year with a 10-year deal with the AOC. 's owns Optus.
* TVNZ said it set a broadcast date later this year forthe reboot of the acclaimed 1980s children's show "Terry Teo," which iscurrently only streaming through its TVNZ On Demand platform. Accordingto the New Zealand Herald, TV criticsslammed the state-owned broadcaster for failing to screen the six-part serieson broadcast TV, as independent broadcast funding agency NZ on Air gave itNZ$1.3 million in funding.
* The Australian Competition and Consumer Commissionhas greenlighted Telstra's proposal to amend the National Broadband Networkmigration plan. Accordingto ZDNet, the telco will give retail service providers an extended time frameto transition clients to the NBN before the mandatory disconnection.
* The U.S. lifestyle and luxury magazine Robb Report will launch an Australiandigital and print edition in October, Mumbrella reports.There will also be an app released next year. The -owned Robb Report will feature local contentas well as "cherry-picked" content from the U.S. edition.
AND SOUTH ASIA
* Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt. Ltd. acquiredexclusive broadcast rights to the 2016 International Champions Cup, TelevisionPost reports.The matches will be telecast live on the Sony ESPN and Sony ESPN HD channels,and will also be streamed on the SonyLIV app. SPNI is a unit of 's , whileSony ESPN is a joint venture between Walt Disney Co.'s ESPN Inc. and SPNI.
* Indian multisystem operator launched itsover-the-top service Asianet Mobile TV+, Indian Television reports.The OTT platform will offer more than 50 TV channels in regional languages.Asianet is a unit of 21st CenturyFox Inc.
* Indian video-on-demand service 'sHungama Play added the film "Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice" toits platform, the Times of India reports.The VOD platform will also offer behind-the-scenes videos from the movie.
* Mobilink's new CEO Aamir Ibrahim is keen on makingthe telco a leading internet company in Pakistan, Propakistani reports.Mobilink has been operating for over 20 years as a cellular and telecomcompany, and now wants to focus on digitization. owns Mobilink.
FEATUREDNEWS
TheDaily Dose: Expedia buys Trover; Gannett circling TRONC again:Expedia acquired Trover, an app and website that allows users to share theirtravel photos, while Gannett held talks with TRONC, previously called TribunePublishing, about a potential takeover of the Chicago-based publisher.
TheDaily Dose Europe: France cracks down on Microsoft; Spotify mulls 2017IPO: The French data protection authority warned Microsoft Corp. tostop collecting excessive data from users without consent, while Spotify Ltd isconsidering a public flotation in 2017.
DataDispatch: ETFs reveal a struggling tech sector: Tech equities havebeen somewhat out of favor throughout 2016, and a close look at tech-focusedETFs underlines the trend.
DataDispatch: Making dollars and sense of forward spectrum auction: TheFCC has ensured there is plenty of supply for its historic 600 MHz incentiveauction. But there is no way to ensure demand.
StartupSpotlight: France's Molotov aims to replace the cable box: Launchedin France earlier this month, Molotov is a TV content aggregator that aims toreplace the traditional cable box, according to Jean-David Blanc, co-founderand CEO of online video startup.
Technology:New SNL Kagan Report: Programmatic Trading Emerging in Linear TVAdvertising: Programmatic trading of linear TV advertising allowsthe buying and selling of ad inventory based on data that better segments theaudience. The sector is only a few years old, but there are signs of increasedactivity.
FEATUREDRESEARCH
Economics of Internet: Profile: Amazon Prime Video(Japan): Amazon Prime Video focuses on Japanese original content toentice consumers into Amazon Prime memberships.
GlobalMultichannel: Global connected device report: Thailand: Thailandboasts a high degree of online participation and engagement among its citizens,with widespread social media usage and heavy consumption of online video.Increasing connectivity across the country, meanwhile, is helping bring morepeople online
Broadcast Investor: Digital multicast network ratings — Me-TV leadsas segment grows: Me-TV (US) leads digital multicast networks in24-hour and prime-time ratings, according to Nielsen Holdings data through May.However, other multicast networks continue to grow ratings and households.
RECENTEARNINGS
EBayexecs unpack Q2 earnings beat on repositioning efforts: EBay hasbeen undergoing several efforts to refresh the brand and improve the platform,and its executives said that a second-quarter beat is evidence that they areworking.
JojiSakurai, Myungran Ha, Grace Shao, Ed Eduard and Wil Hathaway contributed tothis report. The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 7 a.m. Hong Kong time.Some external links may require a subscription.