Olto seeks to promote characters through platforms including KakaoSome characters quickly fade away after short stints, while others outlive generations. Characters that live through the ages such as Batman and Mickey Mouse become immortalized as they are constantly recreated and renewed over the years.The process of character development and reinvention is all part of innovation that helps make a lasting impression among consumers, said Shim Seung-pil, CEO of Olto, a Korean content technology f

TechnologyAug. 15, 2012

Korea Exchange builds school in Cambodia, offers medical checkups in LaosThis is the second in a series of stories featuring major companies’ social contribution activities at home and abroad. ― Ed.Korea Exchange is boosting its contribution to societies in Southeast Asia. Construction will be completed next month on the KRX IT Job Training Center, which the South Korean exchange built in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to help the locals get trained and find jobs. The center will open in October. The cen

IndustryAug. 15, 2012

Kumho Tire has provided an injured Vietnamese worker with months of rehabilitation and medical treatment, so that he can return to work at the company’s plant in the Southeast Asian country and support his family, company officials said on Wednesday.The officials said Kumho Group chairman Park Sam-koo gave full support to Truong Vinh Thuan, who was at risk of being permanently paralyzed after a work accident in April.The worker was operating the power system at the Vietnamese plant when the top

Aug. 15, 2012

The number of Korean vacationers leaving the country made a steep increase despite the economic slowdown at home, the nation’s two leading travel agencies said on Tuesday. Hanatour Service Inc. and Modetour agreed that the unusual heat is driving people away to the beaches in the Americas and Southeast Asia for a cool summer. The Olympic Games boosted summer breaks in Europe as well, they said. According to statistics from the two tourism giants, the number of vacationers who used these two agen

Aug. 14, 2012

Korea’s leading companies in six major export industries now have greater aggregate market values compared to their Japanese peers, as they have grown faster and attracted more investment. Based on last Friday’s closing prices, market capitalizations of the top Korean manufacturers of semiconductors, displays, steel products, ships, oil refiners and builders were greater than that of their Japanese rivals, Shinhan Investment Corp. said Tuesday.In late 2009, Korean companies in only three of the

IndustryAug. 14, 2012

Seoul remains divided over benefits and drawbacks from the free trade pactThis is the fourth in a series of articles to mark the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties between South Korea and China. ― Ed.With discussions on a free trade agreement between South Korea and China in full swing, some doubt how much the deal might benefit Korea. After initiating a joint research project in 2005, the neighboring countries kicked off the first round of negotiations in May in Beijing and the second round on

Aug. 14, 2012

Hyundai Motor said Tuesday that it has signed a sponsorship agreement with France’s soccer club Olympique Lyonnais for the next two years. The team, commonly known as Lyon, plays in France’s highest football division, Ligue 1, winning the league championships seven consecutive times since the 2001-2002 season. With the new partnership, Hyundai said, it aims to raise its brand awareness in Europe. Between 2007 and 2011, an estimated 240 million fans across Europe watched Lyon. Korea’s largest car

IndustryAug. 14, 2012

A recent OECD survey found that Koreans work the longest hours per year (2,193 hours) among OECD countries. The OECD average stands at mere 1,749 hours. However, working long hours is not necessarily linked to higher productivity.In fact, SAS, a software company well-known for its great working environment, recommends its engineers to work strictly eight hours as it is more costly to find and correct errors made by disengaged or overworked engineers. Similarly, Towers Watson’s recent employee su

Aug. 14, 2012

Analysts say strong leadership helps chipmaker improve financial conditionsHalf a year has passed since Hynix, the world’s No. 2 memory chip maker, came under the wing of SK Group, the nation’s third-largest conglomerate. Since then, SK Group has put Hynix under its tight control and sought to implant the conglomerate’s corporate culture at the chipmaker.Last month, the renamed SK Hynix said it posted 23 billion won ($20.4 million) in operating profit for the second quarter, bouncing back into t

IndustryAug. 14, 2012

The largest Burmese python ever found in Florida has been caught in the Everglades, scientists said Tuesday, and it contained 87 eggs -- also thought to be a record.“This thing is monstrous, it‘s about a foot wide,” Kenneth Krysko, the herpetology collection manager at the Florida Museum of Natural History, said of the 17-foot-7-inch (5.35-meter) creature.Scientists at the University of Florida-based museum examined the 164.5-pound (74.5-kilogram) snake on Friday as part of a government research

TechnologyAug. 14, 2012

U.S. researchers have discovered that depression shrinks the brain by stopping nerve connections from forming, thus causing memory and concentration problems.Researchers analyzed brain tissue of patients who died after having memory and concentration disorders, and found inactivity in their synapses. Synapses are genes that are necessary for the function and structure of brain nerve connections.The loss of brain connections happened due to a particular protein called GATA1, which acts like a “sw

TechnologyAug. 14, 2012