On June 26, Beijing University revealed its progress on the development of x86 processor. According to local sources, the university is expected to launch the first commercial x86 product in the first half of 2008.

Actions Semiconductor (Nasdaq: ACTS), a Chinese semiconductor companies announced yesterday that it has settle all patent suits with SigmaTel (Nasdaq: SGTL). In addition, the two companies will enter a cross-license agreement which will allow Actions’ products to be imported into the US without restrictions.

According to the local media, Chinese home appliance, consumer electronics and PC manufacturer TCL may spin off its PC business unit in 2008. TCL’s PC unit incurred a loss for the first time in fiscal 2006 and is in need of more investment to capitalize on its extensive sales network.

At the Broadband World Forum Asia held in Beijing, the DSL Forum announced that the industry had reached a milestone. Robin Mersh, Chief Operating Officer of the DSL Forum, announced that the global number of DSL customers has reached over 200 million, with almost 20% living in China. The number of people worldwide with access to DSL has increased 29% in the past year. Worldwide, DSL has retained its position as the most popular broadband access technology with a market share of 65%. In China, DSL accounts for even a larger market share, capturing 73% of the Chinese broadband market. The country is estimated to have up to 43 million subscribers by May 2007, leading second place country USA by more than 10 million users.

HP (NYSE:HPQ) today announced it is collaborating with Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, to develop multimedia technologies, including automated photo sorting, facial expression recognition and video and music analysis.

Sichuan based computer maker Sinomanic launched production of a series of low-end computers for the less developed regions in China. Priced as low as 998RMB ($130), these computers will include a Linux operating system, MIPS processor, multimedia and network supports. Internet browsing and document processing software will also be packaged into these systems.

Chip maker Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) today announced its Chinese blog at blogs.intel.com/china, making it one of the few Western technology company to use a blog to communicate with its customers in China. Bloggers on the site will include Intel China’s technology and management executives.

Chinese PC manufacturer Lenovo has inked a deal with Microsoft to buy Windows, Office and other software for its PCs totaling up to $1.3 billion. The deal is a result of Lenovo’s move in December 2005 to become the first PC manufacturer in China pre-installing Windows on all of its products.

According to the Chinese Ministry of Information Industry (MII), China’s TV sector has grown significantly in the past decade and now contributes approximately 14% to the country’s electronics industry.

Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB) today announced that it has opened a new Asia testing center in the Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone. The new center will provide electronic entertainment product manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific region, including China, Japan, and South Korea, with more efficient product testing services.

Dolby said this new facility illustrates its commitment to provide more services and support for Dolby customers in the Asia-Pacific region. With the new Waigaoqiao testing center, Dolby believes it can provide faster and more cost-effective product evaluations to its customers. Dolby Laboratories' global product testing center is located at its San Francisco headquarters.