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HTC Buys Into OnLive to Tap Gaming Market

2011/02/10 | By Ken Liu

Taipei, Feb. 10, 2010 (CENS)--HTC announced on Feb. 8 that it has funnel around US$40 million into U.S. online gaming provider OnLive Inc. as part of its effort to strengthen its software and digital-content development capabilities.

The company is Taiwan's No.1 brand-name supplier of mobile phones in terms of market revenue. It began last year investments in digital-content and software developers in hope of distinguishing itself from brand-name phone makers.

HTC Chief Executive Peter Chou recently said his company would boost strategic investments this year with the NT$75 billion (US$2.5 billion at US$1:NT$29) in cash it has now, and that digital-content and cloud-computing developers will be the company's primary investment targets.

Only one day before the online gaming deal, the company acquired stakes in Saffron Digital Ltd. of the United Kingdom, a mobile and Web-based media company, for around NT$1.4 billion (US$48 million).

HTC's non-core business expansion is thought to reach mobile TV service from online-gaming and digital-content business in light of the recent acquisition of a 26% stakes in the Hong Kong TVB by HTC Chairperson Cher Wang.

HTC will publicize details of its OnLive investment deal in the upcoming World Mobile Congress (WMC), which is to be held on Feb. 14-17 in Spain.