YouTube targeted for circulating ‘fake news’

　The Democratic Party said Tuesday it is moving to curb “misinformation” on online streaming websites, including YouTube, the most popular content-sharing platform here.　The ruling party’s special committee announced its plans to stem the spread of fake news and other misinformation on online platforms during a press conference at the National Assembly. 　According to its proposal, online platforms can be fined up to 10 percent of their revenue if they fail to remove “fake

TechnologyOct. 1, 2019

[Graphic News] Six out of 10 Koreans in favor of later retirement age: poll

　Six in 10 South Koreans support a proposal to delay the legal retirement age to 65 from the current 60, a poll showed.　The poll of 1,539 adults aged 19 to 64 conducted by the Korea Institute of Public Administration from Sept. 2-11 found that 61.1 percent were in favor of delaying the retirement age. Only 19.6 percent opposed the proposal, while another 19.3 percent said they had no opinion.　Of those who favored a later retirement age, 61.2 percent said 65 was the most appropriate age, followed

Social AffairsOct. 1, 2019

Capitol’s creative director says SuperM’s debut performance will be ‘historic’

With just days to go before SuperM’s debut on Friday, a creative director at Capitol Music Group, S.M. Entertainment’s US partner, says the K-pop supergroup’s first performance will be special and historic."At the launch, we have a very special and historic debut performance on Saturday at the Capitol Records Building in Los Angeles. And we are building on an incredible stage and (it) will be livestreamed around the world,” Nicole Frantz, Capitol’s creative chi

K-popOct. 1, 2019

Celltrion to offer HIV treatment Temixys in US at lowest market rate

Celltrion will launch its human immunodeficiency virus treatment Temixys in the US at a significantly lower price, the company announced Tuesday. Temixys was approved in November 2018 by the US Food and Drug Administration. Celltrion said it expects the drug’s commercialization to start soon. The tablet is taken once daily and combines the two original chemical drugs Epivir and Viread. As original drugs, the cost for Epivir oral solution (10 mg/mL) is around $125 for a supply of 240 millil

IndustryOct. 1, 2019

EXO's Chen drops 2nd solo EP with retro music

Chen, the main vocalist of popular K-pop boy band EXO, unveiled Tuesday his second solo EP, a six-track record led by the retro pop number "Shall We?"The new EP, "Dear My Dear," follows his first solo EP, "April, and a flower" released in April."Shall We?" targets the autumn music scene, which captures the sentiment of a man having to bid goodnight to his lover through Chen's trendy vocal quality.  Including the lead track, the new album carries "

PerformanceOct. 1, 2019

[Kim Seong-kon] What should a wise man do in a commotion?

Pyrrho of Ellis, the first Greek skeptic philosopher, argued that wise men should be skeptical and thus remain calm under all circumstances. According to the Greek thinker, we should raise questions before believing something too hastily. Yet on the contrary, we are liable to become convinced of something so easily that we seldom doubt its validity. Indeed, we often do not consider the possibility that we might be manipulated by a hidden mastermind pulling the strings from behind. For this reaso

ViewpointsOct. 1, 2019

[Daniel Moss] One dirty word is driving economic change in Japan

Workers born outside Japan are playing an increasingly important role in the world’s third-largest economy. Just don’t call it immigration.The country is often said to pride itself on homogeneity and an aversion to outsiders. But as Japan’s population declines and ages, employers are becoming aware of their constraints. The number of employees from overseas has more than doubled since 2012 to about 1.5 million, says Bank of America Merrill Lynch.In recent conversations with loc

ViewpointsOct. 1, 2019

New Seoul Fashion Week director hopes to promote K-style to world

Fashion designer Jung Ku-ho has stepped down as executive director of Seoul Fashion Week after four years at the helm of the country’s largest fashion event.Taking his place is Jeon Mi-kyeong, a former editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar Korea with more than 25 years of experience in the fashion magazine industry. She will head Seoul Fashion Week with the Seoul Design Foundation for two years. The 2020 spring-summer Seoul Fashion Week -- the first edition led by Jeon -- is slated to t

Arts & DesignOct. 1, 2019

Police search multiple agencies over audition show's alleged vote rigging

Police on Tuesday raided multiple K-pop agencies as part of an investigation into allegations that the entertainment firm CJ ENM's cable music channel rigged the results of its fan-voted idol competition show, "Produce 101," police said.Cyber investigators from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency stormed several agencies that represent members of new boy band X1 in Seoul to secure related documents and information. The 11 members rose from obscurity to stardom in the Mnet audition sho

PerformanceOct. 1, 2019

Samsung BioLogics wins patent suit against Lonza

Samsung BioLogics said Tuesday it has won a lawsuit against Switzerland-based Lonza that is critical for manufacturing antibody agents in South Korea.Following the court ruling, domestic contract development pharmaceutical firms will be able to employ a more efficient method for cell culture production to boost their performance, a company official said.Cell culture is the process by which cells are grown under controlled conditions, generally outside their natural environment. The Korean firm h

IndustryOct. 1, 2019

Rules waived for LG to run beer tasting events

LG Electronics said Tuesday that the existing regulations banning tech firms from promoting alcoholic beverages has been lifted and it can now host beer tasting events to promote its products. The company had requested the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to waive the existing rules in August.It can now hold tasting events at its shops for beer made from its latest HomeBrew machine launched in July and plans to host events across the country, starting November. The HomeBrew machine ca

TechnologyOct. 1, 2019

Kwon Sang-woo as vengeful Go master in ‘The Divine Move: Ghost Move’

The 2014 film “The Divine Move” about a Go master was a brutal, violent film about vengeance and gambling, shattering any expectations one might have had about watching the millennia-old board game that is played completely silently with minimal movement. “The Divine Move: Ghost Move,” an upcoming spinoff and prequel, stars Kwon Sang-woo as the mysterious “Gwi-soo,” or “ghost move,” whose presence was never fully explored in the first film.In the n

FilmOct. 1, 2019

S. Korea sees first negative inflation in September, denies deflation

South Korea saw its inflation drop for the first time in September due to weakened demand and decreased prices of agricultural and petroleum products, government data showed Tuesday.Though the latest figures rekindled concerns on long-term deflation and speculations on an imminent rate cut, policymakers argued that recent fluctuations were only temporary. Consumer prices slipped 0.4 percent in September from a year earlier, marking the first on-year decrease in inflation since the related data w

EconomyOct. 1, 2019

Ex-Virgin Music chief says BTS opened door to success in US for other K-pop acts

The wild global success of Korean boy band BTS is not a stand-alone case but has opened the door for many more K-pop music acts to make inroads into the American music market, a high-profile US music executive said Tuesday."BTS is a great success story. But BTS broke the ice; it is not the ice," Phil Quartararo, CEO of Tripod Partners, said in a press conference on the sidelines of MU:CON, the biggest K-pop fair in South Korea. Quartararo has served in top roles at Virgin Music, Warner

PerformanceOct. 1, 2019

[Photo News] Learning about K-Food

Corea Image Communication Institution President Choi Jung-wha (first row, third from left), Russian Ambassador to South Korea Andrey Kulik (second row, fourth from left) and Singaporean Ambassador to South Korea Eric Teo (second row, sixth from left) pose at the Korea CQ forum, where some 25 participants learned about and tasted products made by traditional Korean beef jerky brand Jungyookpo. The event, hosted by CICI, was held Sept. 24 at SMT House in southern Seoul. (CICI)

Diplomatic CircuitOct. 1, 2019

British minister dispels worries about uncertainty over post-Brexit ties with S. Korea

Britain's top official for Asia dispelled concerns Tuesday about lingering uncertainty over the future relationship between South Korea and Britain after London's expected departure from the European Union.Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister for Asia and the Pacific Heather Wheeler stressed that backed by a set of institutional frameworks, such as a recently signed bilateral free trade agreement, the ties between the two countries are "certain.""There shouldn't be any undue s

Foreign AffairsOct. 1, 2019

Smilegate Investment hosts bio seminar

Smilegate Investment, in collaboration with its social responsibility unit Smilegate Hope Studio and the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization, hosted the 2019 Smilegate Global Health Frontier Seminar in Seoul on Monday.Attended by major pharma and bio companies in Korea as well as prominent faculty members from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the seminar featured lectures and discussion panels that sought to share new insights into the bio sector.In addition, Korean biotech fir

IndustryOct. 1, 2019

Renault Samsung pioneers new sectors in local automotive market

Renault Samsung Motors has been pioneering new sectors in the local automotive market, which has been largely dominated by gasoline-powered sport utility vehicles. The automaker launched a face-lifted version of the QM6 in June, its most popular and most trusted midsized SUV model.The upgraded version, which is also the country’s first liquefied petroleum gas-powered SUV, has proved popular in the local market, leading the carmaker to record the second-highest midsized SUV sales in Ju

MobilityOct. 1, 2019

Asiana to offer weekly flight to Melbourne from December

Asiana Airlines said Tuesday it will launch a weekly flight to Melbourne, Australia, from Dec. 26 to Feb. 20. The first-ever direct flight to the second-largest city in Australia will leave Incheon Airport at 7 p.m. every Thursday and arrive in Melbourne at 7:30 a.m. the next day. The 300-seat Boeing B-777 will be used for the route. Starting with this flight, the air carrier said it will continue to expand long-haul routes.  The price of a return ticket from Incheon to Melbourne

IndustryOct. 1, 2019