At the time, Asian communication platforms were rudimentary and entertainment was minimal; television stations in many countries went off the air in the early evening. Richard and a select team foresaw the potential of using satellite technology to bypass the absence of traditional infrastructure. The result was STAR TV, Asia's first satellite-delivered TV service, which, by 1993 had a viewer base of 45 million in 38 countries. Richard sold STAR to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and went on to form the Pacific Century group of companies.

In the mid- to late 1990s, Richard, along with a small group of local entrepreneurs, scientists and government officers, helped raise awareness of Information Technology in Hong Kong. The group, many of whom make up the IT20 (see link), helped bring government, tertiary institutions and the corporate sector together to promote the development and application of IT in the HKSAR. Richard funded dozens of Internet startups and young technology entrepreneurs, and created alliances with many of the world's technology leaders, such as Intel. Today, Hong Kong is one of the most sophisticated communications hubs in the world.

Privately, Richard continued to search for new ways and platforms to deliver information and entertainment. The result this time was PCCW Limited and NOW TV. In 2000, PCCW saw an opportunity and moved to take over Cable &Wireless HKT, the former Hong Kong telecom monopoly provider controlled by the UK's Cable & Wireless plc, then in the process of selling off its international assets. At the time, the HKSAR was in the midst of deregulating the local telecom market. The company was rapidly losing subscribers. It needed to reinvent itself.

Now, PCCW is not only the largest provider of communications services in Hong Kong, but also one of Asia's leading innovators in Information and Communications Technologies (ICT).

PCCW has achieved many firsts. It launched the world's first major IPTV service, NOW TV, in 2003. Today it is the world's largest commercial deployment, accounting for a fifth of all IPTV subscribers worldwide (as of October 2006). The NOW studios receive visitors from throughout the world, and the technology developed at now is spreading to China and Southeast Asia and beyond. In 2006, PCCW launched its 3G service in Hong Kong and delivered the world's first real-time broadcast mobile TV service to 3G users.

Along the way, Richard has been a driving force in Hong Kong's IT industry. Through his international contacts, PCCW's alliances and a local subcontracting program, Richard has enhanced industry opportunities for the wider IT community. He has been instrumental in attracting international IT companies with state-of-the-art technologies for the successful bidding of Hong Kong's Smart ID Card, that became the pride of Hong Kong citizen. And through scholarship programs and research alliances with local universities and scholars, Richard's companies have worked to expand Hong Kong's IT talent pool.

In his current bid to represent the IT community as one of its Election Committee Members - the elected body that will select the HKSAR's next Chief Executive, Richard hopes to apply his international experience to further strengthen and expand the role of IT in Hong Kong.