LG charges ahead for tomorrow’s business

Under its fourth-generation leader, LG Group, South Korea’s fourth-biggest conglomerate, is undergoing a major transformation: From a manufacturer of fridges and washing machines to one of future cars, robots and artificial intelligence-based solutions. Since rising to the helm of the group in 2018, Chairman and CEO Koo Kwang-mo has put forward the “digital transformation” driver across all LG affiliates, and is spearheading a group-level restructuring of its business portfol

Jan. 24, 2021

KT to sell its radio system affiliate KT Powertel

KT has chosen IDIS, a local security solutions provider, as a preferred bidder for a controlling stake in its radio systems subsidiary KT Powertel, the company announced Friday. KT’s board of directors approved the disposal of its 44.85 percent stake in KT Powertel, worth 40.6 billion won in a meeting Friday. How much IDIS has offered to pay is not known. KT expects to finish the deal by the end of March this year, officials said. With the equity sale, the South Korean telecommunica

Jan. 22, 2021

Future of LG’s rollable smartphone up in the air

The future of LG Electronics’ next generation smartphone model with a rollable OLED display hangs in the air as the tech giant seeks to sell its money-losing mobile business unit. The company said Friday that it was still developing the Rollable, but added that detailed plans for its launch had not been decided, and that the company was “open to every possibility.” During this year’s CES, LG teased the model with a 10-second clip, grabbing global media attention as the

Jan. 22, 2021

S. Korea to launch mid-sized observation satellite in March

South Korea’s ICT Ministry said Friday it has dispatched the country’s new mid-sized satellite to Kazakhstan for a March launch. The 500-kilogram low Earth orbit satellite will arrive at Kazakhstan’s Baikonur Cosmodrome on Sunday, where it will go through a series of steps before the March 20 launch, according to the ministry. From there, the mid-sized satellite will be flown into a 500-kilometer-high orbit by a Russian Soyuz rocket. When in orbit, the satellite, which is

Jan. 22, 2021

T-Money ups ‘untact’ efforts with facial recognition plans

Public transportation in urban cities has been one of the central places of anxiety and fear amidst the COVID-19 era, since physical contact with other people is unavoidable, especially during rush hours. Korea Smart Card says it is trying to reduce these concerns with a “face recognition payment system” that eliminates the need to tap in with a card or a phone. This pilot scheme of instant tag-less payment introduces a safer and more efficient non-contact payment method, it said.

Jan. 22, 2021

Samsung stands to benefit from Intel’s chip outsourcing plan

Samsung Electronics stands to benefit from US tech giant Intel’s chip outsourcing plan, industry sources said Friday. Intel’s incoming CEO Pat Gelsinger said during an earnings call Thursday that the company is likely to increase use of outside chip factories “for certain technologies and products.” The CEO’s remarks came after a news report that Samsung had bagged an order to produce Intel’s Southbridge chipset, one of two controlling chips in the core lo

Jan. 22, 2021

Over 4,000 training equipment accidents reported each year, consumer watchdog says

Amid social distancing measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, more people have turned to home training instead of going to the gym. But working out at home with training equipment should be handled with care, the Korean Consumer Agency (KCA) says. Over 4,000 accidents related to training equipment have been reported across the country every year since 2015, according to the annual data from the KCA’s Consumer Injury Surveillance System. The number of injury reports has increased stea

Jan. 22, 2021

S. Korean observation satellite heads to Kazakhstan for launch

South Korea's science ministry said Friday its new midsized satellite has started traveling to Kazakhstan for a launch this year as the country seeks to develop homegrown space technology. The 500-kilogram low Earth orbit satellite is scheduled to be launched into space on Russia's Soyuz 2.1a rocket from Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome on March 20, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT. Once in orbit, the satellite, equipped with an imaging sensor system developed by South Korean resea

Jan. 22, 2021

S. Korea to provide over W20b in media content support this year

South Korea's ICT ministry said Thursday it will provide 21.2 billion won ($19.3 million) to support the production of local broadcast content in a bid to boost next-generation media services. The Ministry of Science and ICT said it will focus on over-the-top (OTT) or video streaming content this year, setting aside 5.1 billion won to support short form videos and cross media content. It will also provide an additional 10.3 billion won in support for content targeted for overseas markets and p

Jan. 21, 2021

8 out of 10 want online ads clearly identified: survey

More than 80 percent of respondents to a recent survey said online platforms needed to change their practices for search ads to protect consumers from misleading marketing. The Fair Trade Commission on Wednesday announced the results of a consumer awareness survey regarding attitudes toward search ads on online platforms. The respondents were 1,152 ordinary users. Online search ads are displayed together with search results when users type a keyword in the search bar of a website. The survey

Jan. 20, 2021

Turning off camera during video meetings could cut carbon emissions by 96%: study

Remote work and more home entertainment could present a grave danger to the environment, according to a recent study. Published in the Resources, Conservation and Recycling journal earlier this month, the study points to how internet data is stored and transferred across the globe and how it impacts the environment. The study says just one hour of videoconferencing or streaming emits 150-1,000 grams of carbon dioxide. In comparison, a car burning a gallon (3.8 liters) of gasoline emits less t

Jan. 20, 2021

LG mulls exit from smartphone market

LG Electronics may exit the smartphone business after losing about 5 trillion won ($4.5 billion) over the past five years. Its CEO Kwon Bong-seok on Wednesday sent out a message to staff that hinted there would be a major change in the operation of the smartphone segment. “Regardless of any change in the direction of the smartphone business operation, the employment will be maintained, so there is no need to worry,” he said. “Since the competition in the global market for

Jan. 20, 2021

Samsung introduces thinner, more advanced capacitors for 5G phones

Samsung Electro-Mechanics has begun supplying slimmer three-socket multilayer ceramic capacitors, or MLCCs, to global smartphone makers, the electronic components maker said Wednesday.　 The company’s latest MCCC model, 0.65 millimeter thin, is 18 percent smaller than existing products, allowing phone designers to spare internal space in mobile devices. It has also one additional earth socket than existing products and reduces high-frequency power noise, the company said. A MLCC is a k

Jan. 20, 2021

Samsung announces global launch of new SSD series

Samsung Electronics Wednesday announced the global launch of its new consumer solid state drive series. The 870 EVO SSD series will be available in around 40 countries, starting with South Korea and the US, according to the company. Samsung Electronics’ new SATA solution, which features the company’s latest V-NAND and controller, allows maximum sequential read and write speeds of 560 and 530 megabytes per second, respectively. It also boasts 38 percent faster read and write spee

Jan. 20, 2021

Hyperconnect launches global project SLIDE in North America

Hyperconnect has officially launched SLIDE, a video-first dating and social discovery app with plans to roll out in select markets. The launch comes as online social discovery channels continue to grow rapidly in the era of COVID-19. After a year of development, SLIDE is now available in North America, enabling users to express themselves three-dimensionally and vividly through a video-based dating experience. Slide is the product of a multinational development effort, involving resources acros

Jan. 20, 2021

PoongLim Pharmatech to begin mass production of COVID-19 vaccine syringes

PoongLim Pharmatech, a local medical device manufacturer, will produce 10 million syringes a month for COVID-19 vaccines, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups said Tuesday. The Gunsan, North Jeolla Province-based firm recently finished repurposing its factory as a smart manufacturing facility to produce a more efficient type of syringe, known as a low-dead-space syringe. It is designed to minimize the amount of fluid left between the plunger and needle after a shot. PoongLim’s syringe rec

Jan. 19, 2021

S. Koreans' spending on Netflix doubles in 2020: data

South Koreans are estimated to have spent over 500 billion won ($454 million) on global video streaming service Netflix last year, doubling the amount tallied the previous year, data showed Tuesday. Local credit card payments on the video streaming service are estimated to have reached 517.3 billion won last year, compared to 248.3 billion won in 2019 and just 65.7 billion won in 2018, according to data tracker WiseApp. Based on the data, WiseApp said paid subscribers to Netflix stood at 4.1 m

Jan. 19, 2021

Samsung Electronics launches smart tracking tag

Samsung Electronics will introduce a smart tracking tag this week to help users find lost items, the company announced Monday. Dubbed the Galaxy SmartTag, the product will go on sale here Tuesday for a retail price of 29,700 won, the company said. The brand-new Bluetooth tracker is designed to help users locate lost items such as their keys, phones, pets and anything that they could misplace. By attaching the dongle to your personal belongings, SmartTag will emit an alarm sound when you

Jan. 18, 2021

[Herald Interview] Hard lessons from COVID-19 will equip Korea better for next pandemic

This interview is the second installment in a three-part series in conversations with the former directors of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- now the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency -- as the country looks back on a year of the COVID-19 pandemic. -- Ed. A former head of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says South Korea weathered the novel coronavirus relatively unscathed in the initial stages, but that the winter serves as a reminder of

Jan. 18, 2021

SK hynix to launch consumer SSDs

SK hynix will launch consumer solid state drives here for the first time, the company said Monday, as the remote working trend boosted demand for personal storage devices. The chipmaker will introduce two models -- Gold P31 and Gold S31 – which were launched in the US market in 2020 and 2019, respectively, and received positive reviews. Gold P31 is an PCI Express SSD model, the world‘s first consumer SSD with 128-layer NAND, that can be used for any motherboard that has an availab

Jan. 18, 2021