IPad Causes Collateral Damage in Taiwan

Taiwanese companies followed a simple strategy to get to the top of the global electronics industry: When all else fails, cut prices. During the depths of the financial crisis, for instance, Taiwan's Acer and Asustek Computer undercut their bigger stateside rivals by focusing on small, inexpensive laptops known as netbooks. By early 2010, Asustek had become the world's No. 5 PC maker, measured by shipments. Acer shoved aside Dell (DELL) to reach second place, and executives at the Taipei-based company said it was only a matter of time before they passed Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) to become the biggest computer manufacturer in the world.