PCCW shares rise on move to nix ad unit
By Bill Clifford, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 4:10 AM ET Oct 4, 2001
HONG KONG (CBS.MW) -- Shares of Pacific Century CyberWorks rose 3.2 percent Thursday, joining the broad-based Hong Kong rally with an extra kick from specific news that Richard Li's Asian communications vehicle is committed to pruning non-core businesses.
In the case of AdSociety, an Internet advertising company in which PCCW holds a 79 percent stake, the plug is being pulled for good.
AdSociety began business in August 2000 to build a pan-Asian advertising sales network. It provided online, broadband and wireless marketing services to more than 250 clients, most of which were traditional advertisers, and more than 2,000 member Web sites, the company and PCCW said.
PCCW (PCW: news, board) issued a statement late Wednesday explaining the decision to shut down the subsidiary immediately "in view of the current difficult and uncertain market conditions."
AdSociety's closure will affect more than 100 employees in Hong Kong, Australia, China, Japan, Korea, Singapore and Taiwan.
The move also underscores PCCW's stated strategy of "streamlining the non-core business of the group and concentrating on its core business of integrated telecommunications and related broadband services."
Shares of PCCW (0008: news, board) rose nearly 4 percent at one stage before ending up 6 cents, or 3.2 percent, at HK$1.92.
Bill Clifford is Asia bureau chief of CBS.MarketWatch.com.
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