Asia Pacific Telecom chose CDMA2000 — and became the loneliest network in Taiwan

Asia Pacific Telecom (APT) was founded in 2000 as Taiwan's first private fixed-network operator. In 2002, its subsidiary paid NT$10.57 billion for a 3G license and chose CDMA2000 technology — a standard used by Verizon, SK Telecom, and KDDI. The rest of the world adopted WCDMA. That choice left APT permanently isolated from the global handset supply chain, unable to offer competitive phones or roaming, and stuck as Taiwan's smallest operator.

The company's situation went from bad to catastrophic in 2006, when its parent, the Rebar Group, collapsed. Founder Wang You-tseng and his sons had embezzled NT$32 billion from APT through fraudulent bond issuances and related-party transactions. Wang fled to the United States. The Taiwan Supreme Court later convicted his sons with sentences of 5.6 to 30 years. APT had not filed financial reports for six years, and seven government-appointed board members had done nothing.

In 2014, Hon Hai (Foxconn) acquired a controlling stake in APT, hoping to turn it around. But Foxconn was a manufacturer, not a telecom operator, and APT's fundamental problems — too few subscribers, a legacy technology with no upgrade path, and no competitive advantage — remained unsolved. Combined with Taiwan Star Telecom, the two struggling operators accumulated over NT$78.1 billion in losses over nine years.

In February 2022, APT agreed to be absorbed by Far EasTone in a stock swap valued at NT$24.7 billion. The merger closed on December 15, 2023, and APT was dissolved. Its SIM cards were finally decommissioned on April 1, 2026. The CDMA2000 license, the embezzlement, and the failed rescue had destroyed a company that had never been profitable.