US embassy cable - 05TAIPEI1563

UNCLAS TAIPEI 001563 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS TO AIT/W 
 
STATE ALSO FOR EAP/RSP/TC AND NP/ECC 
 
PM/DTCC FOR BLUE LANTERN COORDINATOR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KOMC, ETTC, KSEP, TW 
SUBJECT: TAIWAN: RESPONSE ON BLUE LANTERN LICENSE 05- 
948068 
 
REF: STATE 40724 
 
1.  Concerning the purchase application package of DTC 
CASE number 05-948068, for end user Chung Shan 
Institute of Science (CSIS). 
 
2.  Mr. W. Z. Chen who signed the Ring Line purchase 
orders is the company's chairman.   Ms. Felisa Chang, 
W.Z. Chen's secretary, confirmed that CSIS is the end 
user of the subject commodities.   CSIS contracted Opto 
Tech Corporation to assemble the subject equipment. 
Opto then sub-contracted with Ring Line Corp. who 
serves as the agent to find the components. 
Established in 1977, Ring Line now serves as agent in 
Taiwan for Cisco Systems, FORE Systems, Network 
Appliance, and Sun Microsystems Inc.   The company 
mainly imports network components and supplies domestic 
companies/institutes in both the private and official 
sectors.  Except offices in Taiwan, Ring Line also set 
up three branches in Nanjing, Shanghai and Beijing. 
Contact phone numbers of Nanjing office is 86-025-5771- 
1503; in Shanghai office is 86-021-6249-7370; and in 
Beijing office is 86-010-8229-3216. 
 
3.  Opto Tech was established in December 1983 in the 
Hsinchu Science-based Industrial Park (HSIP), and now 
is the leading Light Emitting Diode (LED) chip supplier 
in Taiwan.  The company has two factories in the HSIP 
and one factory in Suzhou, China.  Contact phone number 
of Suzhou factory is 86-512-6665-5226.  Mr. Kevin Mo, 
Manager of the Information & Telecommunication Sales 
Department, explained that this department is the only 
office of this company working for the clients in 
military-associated institutes including CSIS, 
Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) and 
the Taiwan Military.  After Opto receives contracts 
from these institutes, they purchase and assemble the 
components for the clients.  When asked why Opto needs 
to go through Ring Line, Kevin complained that there 
has been no way for the company to purchase the 
components in the U.S. directly from manufacturers 
because the latter always request that the business be 
done through their own agents, who then get the 
commission. 
 
PAAL