Sony?s Japan-based Memory Stick Business Center plans to set up a testing laboratory for Memory Stick-compatible products in Taiwan by the end of this year, stated Mario Manabe, chairman of the center, this week in Taipei.

There are more than 100 licensed IT companies engaged in the production of Memory Stick-compatible products in Taiwan, making the island an ideal location for Sony to build its first offshore testing laboratory, Manabe said.

With an increasing number of products, including handsets, e-books and digital music players, being built with Memory Stick media slots, it is crucial to ensure compatibility among products, Manabe noted.

Sony plans to launch 2GB Memory Stick cards in the fall of this year and 4GB models with a data transmission speed of 10Mbps in spring 2005, according to Manabe.

Manabe estimated that global shipments of Memory Sticks will total 48 million units between April 2004 and March 2005, and 80 million units in the 12 months after that.

From DigiTimes