S. Korea pledges to spend W30tr for 5G ecosystem by 2022

　The South Korean government pledged Monday to invest more than 30 trillion won ($26 billion) to establish a full-fledged 5G environment by 2022, as the country beat its competitor by a hair to begin commercial services of the hyperspeed network last week. 　During an event to mark the achievement at the Olympic Park in Seoul, President Moon Jae-in introduced the country’s comprehensive 5G-based initiative. In collaboration with private companies, he pledged to build a nationwide 5G network by 20

April 8, 2019

[Graphic News] Air pollution causes 17,000 deaths in S. Korea in 2017

　Poor air quality caused more than 17,000 deaths in South Korea in 2017, more than 90 percent of which resulted from the onslaught of harmful PM2.5 particles, a study released by a US civic group showed.　The “State of Global Air 2019” report, published by the Health Effects Institute, revealed that about 17,300 people died from indoor and outdoor air pollution in Korea in 2017, up 23.5 percent from the 14,000 recorded in 1990.　In Korea, the death toll from air pollution decreased to 13,200 in 19

April 8, 2019

[Non-memory Korea: 2] Korean chipmakers to seize nonmemory opportunities in 5G era

With South Korea launching the world’s first commercial fifth-generation telecom network last week, the nation’s semiconductor industry is seeking opportunities in the emerging 5G chipset market in an effort to overcome sluggish demand for memory chips. As Korea’s economy has been heavily reliant on memory exports for the past 35 years, the current down cycle is making a critical dent in the export-driven economy, raising calls for new high-tech export goods to reduce the overdependence on memor

April 8, 2019

LG out to strengthen LCD TV presence

Amid aggressive expansion by Chinese TV makers in the liquid-crystal display TV market, LG Electronics is moving to strengthen its leadership in the premium LCD TV market, according to the industry on Monday. Although LG has gained more attention with its organic light-emitting diode TVs in recent years, the company still takes a major share of the LCD TV market. It plans to expand its market share and launches new lineups featuring upgraded technologies each year. Out of the total of 218.8 mill

April 8, 2019

Mobile 5G base stations clustered in major cities

　While South Korea began commercial operations of fifth-generation cellular network services last week, there is still a long way to go for customers nationwide to benefit from the hyperspeed services. 　Rep. Byun Jae-il of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party said Sunday nearly 90 percent of the 5G base stations are currently located in the country’s capital city of Seoul, its surrounding area, and five metropolitan cities. 　Citing data from the Ministry of Science and ICT, Byun asserted the

April 7, 2019

Lawmakers call for blockchain regulations to be eased

　A bipartisan group of lawmakers has ratcheted up calls for deregulation of the blockchain industry, as the financial regulator has adopted a conservative attitude toward the easing process due to procedural reasons.　While the ruling Democratic Party has focused on comprehensive deregulation guidelines, the main opposition Liberty Korea Party has criticized the Moon Jae-in administration for being heavy-handed over technological innovations. Concern has been rising here that the government’s con

April 7, 2019

S. Koreans start to register 5G phones

Smartphones enabled by fifth-generation telecommunications networks were launched and registered in South Korea on Friday, marking the beginning of a new telecom era. The country’s three mobile carriers -- SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus -- started offering 5G mobile services for ordinary smartphone users with the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G model. SK Telecom, the biggest telecom firm by number of subscribers, held a ceremony at its T World shop in Gangnam Station, southern Seoul, to celebra

April 5, 2019

[Herald Interview] Freshcode hits home run in Korean food delivery scene

South Korea has long been a haven for food delivery. Most of the time, food is delivered to your doorstep within 30 minutes of placing an order. But professional food delivery businesses, such as Baedal Minjok have a downside. Although such services are popular, they are costly due to the number of deliverymen they need to employ. These expenses usually translate into higher retail prices. Overcoming such issues related to cost and efficiency, Seoul-based salad delivery firm Freshcode has deploy

April 5, 2019

S. Korea, US engage in consuming battle over ‘world’s first’ 5G title

　Just an hour before midnight Wednesday, an unexpected telecom subscription event took place in South Korea. The country’s three mobile carriers registered several people as the “world’s first” subscribers to the fifth-generation cellular network. 　The midnight event was hurriedly scheduled amid reports Verizon was planning its own world premiere of the 5G commercial rollout. At 1 a.m. (Seoul time), the US mobile carrier announced its customers in Chicago and Minneapolis had become “the first in

April 4, 2019

Samsung makes multi-mode Exynos chipsets for 5G

Samsung Electronics will start offering cutting-edge chipsets as communication solutions for the commercial fifth-generation network, the tech titan announced Thursday. One day before the launch of Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, the company said it has embarked on mass production of the 5G multi-mode chipsets for upcoming 5G premium devices. In addition to the previously introduced Exynos Modem 5100, Samsung unveiled its new single-chip radio frequency transceiver Exynos RF 5500, and a supply modulator

April 4, 2019

LG Display hits 100 million in auto display sales volume

LG Display sold more than 100 million displays for automobiles as of the first quarter of this year, reaching the figure 14 years after entering the auto business, the company said Thursday. Since first starting to provide central information displays for global automakers in 2005, the Korean panel maker has seen rapid growth in the auto display business, hitting 10 million in 2011 and 50 million in 2015. According to IHS Markit, LG has maintained the top spot in the market for automotive displa

April 4, 2019

Samsung to form new IoT unit mobilizing mobile app developers

Samsung Electronics seems to be on track to reinforce its goal of realizing the “intelligence of things” -- instead of the internet of things -- by conducting a major organizational reshuffle between the company’s mobile device and home appliance divisions, according to the industry on Wednesday. Some of approximately 1,000 software engineers -- about a third of the total workforce -- who had devoted their capabilities to developing various applications for smartphones within the IT and mobile c

April 3, 2019

[Photo News] Korean heritage on display in NYC

(LG Electronics)A video clip of UNESCO-designated cultural heritage sites in South Korea is played on a large display manufactured by LG Electronics at Times Square in New York. The video is being played 120 times a day until April 10 to promote the beauty and history of Korean heritages at one of the world’s busiest streets, filled with visitors from around the world, according to LG.

April 2, 2019

5G competition heats up as KT launches unlimited data plan

Leading South Korean mobile carrier KT on Tuesday introduced its “unlimited” data plan for the fifth-generation wireless network, heating up competition over the hyperspeed network service that marks the world’s first commercial launch Friday.  　While unveiling a list of pricing packages during a press conference in Seoul, KT said the price for unlimited data program named “Super Plan Basic” will start at 80,000 won ($70.40). It also comes with unlimited roaming service in 185 countries, the com

April 2, 2019

Hakan Cervell named new CEO of Ericsson-LG

Ericsson-LG, a telecommunications network equipment provider, on Monday named Hakan Cervell as CEO of its operations in South Korea. Cervell, who joined Ericsson in 1990, has held various key posts at the Swedish company, including as board director of its global northeast operations. Until recently, he headed the company’s operations in Taiwan. He will be leading both Korea and Taiwan businesses until a new head for Taiwan is nominated, according to the company. “Strongly supporting Ericsson’s

April 1, 2019

Samsung boasts spec of 5G phone, end-to-end solutions ahead of launch

The Samsung Galaxy S10 5G that is slated to open the 5G era when it hits the market Friday will feature a larger screen and batter to let users make the most of the world’s first commercial fifth-generation mobile networks, the company said Monday. While releasing a second announcement that the Galaxy S10 5G edition will be available for purchase in Korea this week, Samsung once again highlighted the massive specs of the world’s first 5G-enabled device, and how closely the company and network op

April 1, 2019

Samsung scouts global talent for AI, big data, robot businesses

Samsung Electronics has scouted globally renowned technology experts in an effort to strengthen its new future businesses, including artificial intelligence, big data and robotics, the company announced Sunday. The South Korean tech titan has lately been hunting for top talent in the three fields. Last year, it hired AI scholars Sebastian Seung and Daniel Lee, jumping into the race for AI technologies. To enhance current research and development capabilities in AI, Samsung recruited Wei Gu-yeon,

March 31, 2019

Samsung Galaxy S10+ tops Consumer Reports’ smartphone ratings

　Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy S10 Plus has taken the top spot in the latest smartphone ratings released by US products evaluator Consumer Reports, outpacing its previous models and Apple’s smartphones when it comes to the devices’ functionality and durability.　According to Consumer Reports on Wednesday, Galaxy S10 Plus boasted the longest battery life with an average of 39.5 hours on normal use. That was about eight hours longer than the Galaxy Note 9. 　Galaxy S10 plus has also proven to be more

March 29, 2019

With Samsung and Huawei out of picture, LG G8 ThinQ tops smartphone camera ranking

　LG Electronics said Friday its flagship smartphone G8 ThinQ ranked top in camera functionality in a recent survey, amid the company’s efforts to increase its presence in the smartphone market dominated by Samsung Electronics and other global giants　According to the survey by Valued Camera eXperience, the G8 ThinQ scored the highest in an overall assessment of camera performance with 77 points. The smartphone outperformed its competitors in terms of image quality. 　LG’s flagship smartphone was c

March 29, 2019