The Computing Center, Ministry of Education (MOE) and colleges started to establish TANET in September, 1990. Next year, Institute for Information Industry (III) established SEEDNET which is the first Internet for non-academic use. In April, 1995, the Data Communication Institute, Ministry Transportation and Communication open HiNet to the public for trial use, and started to operate commercially next year. Later in July, SEEDNET started to operate commercially, too.

As to the condition of Taiwan Internet application, till Oct. 1997, there are 1,660 thousand Internet users in total, connect directly or indirectly. This is including over 500 thousand of academic users, and over 1,160 thousand business/household users. It rates 8% of 21 million populations in Taiwan. The amount of ISPs grew 5 times up to 50 within 3 years (see Appendix 1 for a detailed listing), over 2,700 organizations setup Chinese Web sites on Internet. More detailed information can be found in the following 5 figures related to:

• Growth of users,

• growth of public/private Web site,

• ISP connection structure (as of June 30, 1997),

• structure of users,

• current status of Taiwan Internet industry.
 

2. STRATEGY OF PROMOTING TAIWAN INTERNET APPLICATION

In the following, Taiwan's NII plan will be described briefly. Of this total schema, Industry (III) is chartered specifically with the mission to develop and strengthen the information industry, and to promote effective utilization of information technologies.

2.1. MEDIUM-TERM GOAL

The medium-term goal of Taiwan's NII include the following:

Chunghwa Telecommunication Co., Ltd. will construct the infrastructure by following the plans of supporting three million Internet users within 3 years. To construct Internet network, Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. is requested for investing 5 to 6 billion US dollars in FY1997 to 1999, so that it can provide better service and quality with reasonable price.

For reaching the goal of being the Asia Pacific Internet Center, Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. will proceed with the followings:

TANet is conducted by MOE. It has setup the goal on putting all the senior high and vocational schools on Internet within 3 years, and all the junior high and elementary schools on Internet within 5 years. Therefore, in the year 2000, it can attend the ratio of 20 students have one networking-multimedia computer at a minimum. To reach the goal, first, it will plan to integrate all educational sources to set up Internet education centers in each county to support the middle/primary schools Internet application. Second, it will train the teachers as fast as to accumulate IT auxiliary teachers up to the amount of 12,800 before Y2000. Third, it will collaborate with sources from private sectors in order to promote the computer training and Internet application in middle/primary schools, to design and develop the lectures to make abundant learning resources and contents available for access, and to invest 567 million US dollars in the coming 4 years to elevate quality of teaching and learning. Last, it will build up highways for IT education and expedite up training IT talents.

2.5. ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT AND GOVERNMENT ON NET

This project is configured, advanced and evaluated by the Research, Development and Evaluation Commission in the Executive Yuan. The Commission has made effort on computerization over the past 15 years by integrating the large-scale information systems such as Residence, Land Administration, Taxation, Financial Administration, Customs Clearance, and Healthcare Systems through networking. It will utilize the foundation to promote information exchange, and to maximize the benefit of value-added utilization of electronic databases. Governmental Intranet backbone system has been activated in June 1996. The system not only provides all kinds of network information services, but also promotes electronic document exchange in all agencies. The commission also makes a plan to promote the system to central first-class institutions in the end of 1997, and expand it to local institutions from 1998, and island-wide institutions from July 1998. By pooling resources from private sectors, telecommunications and postal organizations, the plan can make everyone in every village, town, city and county enjoy the benefit from the availability of information network service. The plan will complete construction of demonstrative villages before Oct. 1997. The most important is, the plan will enhance administration efficiency and the facilitating service for people.

2.6. MILLION ONLINE RESIDENCES AND ENTERPRISES PROMOTION PROJECT

This project is sponsored by the Industrial Technology Department, Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), and implemented by the Institute for Information Industry (III). With the target of 1 million medium/small enterprises and 5,920 thousand households, the project will make effort to reach the goal that promote one million of enterprises and households on Internet in 3 years (700 thousand households and 300 thousand enterprises users).

In order to popularize Internet usage, the project sets up its promotion policies on encouraging the existing 2,210 thousand PC users and annually 700 thousand of new PC buyers online. It will utilize associations membership channels and synergy systems to promote enterprises online. At the same time, it will coordinate with school Internet projects, and stir up household users by means of putting students on net. Furthermore, integrate private sources to plan, construct, and promote the contents of Chinese information on Internet. To create the economic scale of market demand, it would study and promote Killer Application in order to encourage more potential Internet users.

2.7. LIFELONG LEARNING WEB

The Lifelong Learning Web is sponsored by the Industrial Technology Department, MOEA, and planned and promoted by III. The Web involves education, library, and art aspects. The education web includes information from schools, social education, vocational and skill training etc... The library information web consists of electronic libraries and news etc... The art web contains information in museums, art galleries, and cultural centers etc... To attract the attention of Taiwan residents, the Web integrates and accumulates information of education and skills, recommends abundant international learning contents, and provides various lifelong learning channels. To construct Taiwan as the "Information Center of Global Chinese Language Webs", it gathers and develops categories of Chinese language information. Through Internet, the Web helps the overseas Chinese and foreigners to learn Chinese language and realize Chinese culture. It also builds an "Internet Education Center of Global Chinese Language".

2.8. INTERNET COMMERCE AND ELECTRONIC TRADE/TRANSACTION

The Electronic Commerce is inducted into the Commerce Automation Project by the MOEA. The Electronic Trade/Transaction system is conducted by the Ministry of Finance. Within 4 years, the project advanced forty industries (approximately total 50 thousand enterprises) to improve their operation with their upstream, midstream, and downstream partners, and to elevate competitiveness. In 1997, it constructed Quick Response System for 5 chosen industries, which can help the up/mid/downstream industries reduce their cost, and effectively meet consumers' needs. It will be applied extensively to other industries in 1998.

Furthermore, it creates new commerce channels, and establishes an active and sound environment for electronic commerce development, so that vendors and consumers are willing to use online trade/transaction. The transaction system will be changed enormously because of the popularity of Internet commerce. To account for this trend, the Ministry of Finance has been revising banking law and the related regulations. The Capital Center and related organizations have been planning to provide Internet electronic transaction system to facilitate the income and outcome procedure for Internet users. As a result, the system will create new commerce channels, and elevate industrial competitiveness.

2.9. NETWORK-BASED SOCIAL & MEDICAL CARE SERVICE SYSTEM

The System is planed and promoted by the Ministry of Interior and the Department of Health. There will be new measures to provide special information network services systems for the handicapped to retrieve information from the network, to communicate with others and to improve working environment. The systems have been implemented for upgrading the level of medical services available to the residents lived on the off-shore islands and in the remote areas. The System includes the connections of the National Taiwan University Hospital with the Jin-shan Medical Center, the Taipei Veterans' Hospital with the Jin-Men Granite Hospital, and the Cheng-kung University Hospital in Taiwan with the Provincial Peng-hu (off-island) Hospital. Another tele-medicine system, which connects the Military Hospital in Taipei with the Lien-chiang County Hospital in Ma-Tsu, is under implementation.

The government agencies are also planning the pre-registration/ appointment and social welfare consulting service through Internet, as well as providing health information sharing among the providers and the public through network.