Taiwan

News Corp's latest financial results for the second quarter 2001 have shown that Asian joint venture ESPN Star Sports (ESS) is still $21million (?23.4m) in debt.

The IOC will not monitor China's human rights record or relations with rival Taiwan in the run-up to the 2008 Olympic Games, the body's president Jacques Rogge has said. For the full story see the FEATURES section of sportbusiness.com.

Asian satellite broadcaster ESPN Star Sports (ESS) has renewed its deal for the exclusive rights to Major League Baseball (MLB) in a new two-year agreement.

The World Professional Pool Championships was the most watched sports programme on cable networks across Chinese Taipei during July according to host broadcaster ESPN.

A squad of top NBA players will visit China and Taiwan in September for two exhibition games, the National Basketball Association has announced.

A favourable review of Beijing's 2008 Games bid by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) showed human rights protestors and US critics were out of step with world opinion, a Beijing official said on Sunday.

ESPN Star Sports (ESS) will develop its broadcast feeds in Asia with the addition of the Philippines.

Asian Internet firm chinadotcom is to cut more than 400 staff by June and sell non-core operations.

Taiwan will stage Asian golf's first US$1.5m (S$2.7m) tournament in November, with German car giant BMW putting up the cash.

The tiny South Pacific state of Guam has been chosen as the new venue for this year's weightlifting world championships after the neighbouring island of Nauru withdrew its offer to stage the event.

Asian sports broadcaster ESPN STAR Sports (ESS) has acquired the exclusive terrestrial, cable and satellite television broadcast rights of the English Premier League for the next three seasons beginning August 2001.

China will be too busy pursuing its bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games over the next few months and will likely leave Taiwan alone, Taiwan's Vice President Annette Lu said on Tuesday.

BMCMedia has been appointed by the Walt Disney Internet Group to represent football web site Soccernet, in all major markets in the Asia Pacific region, including Australia, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Peoples Republic of China, India, Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia and New Zealand.

The NBA, constrained by the ?mature? domestic market are seeking new markets in Asia, according to a report in the Asian Wall Street Journal.

SINA.com, an online media and services company for Chinese communities worldwide, has launched China's official Olympics web site, http://aoyun.sina.com.cn.

For many Asian athletes, winning gold at the Sydney Olympics will also mean a small fortune.