Tuesday March 9, 9:14 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Visit By Compaq CEO Reinforces
Company's Commitment to China
HOUSTON and BEIJING, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 9,
1999-- Demonstrating the company's continued commitment to China, Compaq's president and chief
executive officer, Eckhard Pfeiffer, arrived in Beijing today on a four-day visit -- his first to the PRC since
the integration of Compaq with Digital Equipment Corporation and Tandem last June.
During the tour, Pfeiffer will officiate at the opening of Beijing's first online bookstore, deliver a keynote
address at the Compaq Government Leaders' Forum on E-Commerce, and participate in a ceremony
signing a landmark agreement between Compaq and the China National Computer Software and
Technology Service Corporation (CS&S) to develop a Chinese 64-bit UNIX.
''Compaq is committed to helping China develop its IT infrastructure and software skills, particularly in
the areas of e-commerce and systems integration,'' said Pfeiffer. ''As part of our long-term commitment,
Compaq plans to invest more than US $30 million over the next 12 to 24 months in these and other
areas.''
Dr Philip Yu, president of the Compaq Greater China Division, said, ''Through judicious investment, we
are seeking to provide our leadership and expertise to these extremely important growth areas. Our
investments will further strengthen existing joint venture partnerships in China and foster new ones.
''This will be done through technology transfer and training in software development and in network and
systems integration in the finance and telecommunications industries,'' Dr. Yu continued. ''With product
co-branding already in progress in China, we will now start to invest in new manufacturing opportunities
to enable Compaq to become even more responsive to local market demands.''
One of Compaq's joint e-commerce projects with China will come to fruition with the opening of the
Beijing Book Centre Online, which Pfeiffer will officiate.
The new online bookstore represents a major milestone for the capital city in its drive towards
e-commerce and Internet-based initiatives. Compaq China and the China Information Highway
Corporation (CIHC) jointly developed the online bookstore, which will enable millions of people to shop
for books via the Internet.
Compaq is assuming a global leadership position in helping large state enterprises use the Internet and
e-commerce to become multinational economic powerhouses in the new Millennium.
Pfeiffer's keynote address -- ''Electronic Commerce: Winning Globally in the 21st Century'' -- at the
Compaq Government Leaders' Forum on E-Commerce will focus on this and a new industrial revolution,
the Electronic Services Revolution, at hand.
The forum will host approximately 100 top government officials and key executives of major corporations
who represent the decision-makers on the implementation of e-commerce in China, Hong Kong, and
Taiwan. Other key speakers at the forum include John Wolf, ambassador to APEC, United States of
America Embassy, and Guy Tallent, chief executive officer of the Global Trust Organisation.
Compaq's agreement with CS&S is to co-develop an enhanced and localised Chinese 64-bit UNIX
operating system based on the Compaq Tru64 UNIX operating system. The agreement also covers
joint-marketing efforts, opening up new opportunities in the software market while propelling Compaq to
the forefront of China's 64-bit computing platform.
Pfeiffer's visit to China will go beyond business meetings. He will address nearly 1,000 students from
universities around the capital, including the Beijing University, Qinghua University, and the Ren Min
University. His talk will focus on the key success factors for Compaq and the challenges facing Compaq
in the 21st Century.
To encourage the use of the Internet among youngsters, Pfeiffer, on behalf of Compaq, will donate over
350 PCs to Youth Palaces and schools across China to set up their own Compaq Internet Classrooms.
One of these classrooms will be set up in Guangan City, home of the late Deng Xiao Ping.
China is part of Pfeiffer's 12-day Asia Pacific tour which began in Australia and Singapore and will end in
Japan.
Compaq Background
Compaq Computer Corporation, a Fortune Global 100 company, is the second largest computer
company in the world and the largest global supplier of computer systems. Compaq develops and
markets hardware, software, solutions, and services, including industry-leading enterprise computing
solutions, fault-tolerant business-critical solutions, enterprise and network storage solutions,
commercial desktop and portable products and consumer PCs. The company is an industry leader in
environmentally friendly programs and business practices.
Compaq products are sold and supported in more than 100 countries through a network of authorized
Compaq marketing partners. Customer support and information about Compaq and its products are
available at compaq.com.
Compaq, Registered U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Product names mentioned herein may be
trademarks and / or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
BROADCAST MEDIA ADVISORY: Satellite feeds on the announcement from China are available as
follows:. B-ROLL FEED TIME AND COORDINATES Tuesday, March 9, 1999 -- from 10:30 to 10:45 a.m.
(EST) KU Band GE3/Transponder 18 C Band Telstar 4/Transponder 6
REFEED TIME AND COORDINATES Tuesday, March 9, 1999 -- from 2:30 to 2:45 p.m. (EST) KU Band
Telstar 5/Transponder 17 C Band Telstar 5/Transponder 15
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