-----------------------------------------------
【Taiwan News 】Friday, June 30,2000 By Marie Feliciano Staff Reporter
-----------------------------------------------

　　Business-to-business electronic portal HealthTrade yesterday made its Taiwan debut, lured by the island's NT$72 billion-healthcare industry.

　 "We think the time is ripe to offer Web-based procurement solutions in Taiwan's healthcare sector," Sylvia Lien, the portal's chief executive officer, said at the company's Taipei launch.

　 "The market's potential is huge considering Taiwan's impending entry into the World Trade Organization.

　 "Lien said at least three Taiwan hospitals had join an initial group of buyers and suppliers composed of 3,860 pharmacies, 198 hospitals, 1,245 clinics and 2,680 healthcare-related organizations to jumpstart HealthTrade.

　 By automating the healthcare supply chain, buyers and suppliers would be able to cut their operation costs by 20 to 50 percent, gain access to timely and accurate information, and boost their efficiency, she said.

　 The company teamed up with portal builder TASKCO. Com, an incubation and application service provider, in setting up its trading network infrastructure. TASKCO., founded in March, allied itself with e-commerce solution leader EdgeWave, developer of state-of-the-art B2B e-business solution, Net, Trader. Two of the portal's features were HealthTradeDeals, a marketplace that offered logged-in users products at reduced prices, and a trade auction where buyers could purchase inventories or lease refurbished equipment, Lien said.

　 The portal also teamed up with MasterCard to ensure the security of online transactions, she said, adding that HealthTrade's neutral positioning meant it was not a part of any group purchasing organization.