SK’s takeover welcomed by market amid high expectations on chip boom

SK’s surprise takeover of LG’s wafer business was welcomed by market watchers Tuesday, as it raised expectations of the country’s third-largest conglomerate fortifying the semiconductor business.SK Holdings, the holding unit of SK Group, revealed in a regulatory filing Monday that it has agreed to acquire a 51 percent stake in LG Siltron, a wafer manufacturing unit owned by LG Corp. for 620 billion won ($531.6 million).(Yonhap)According to market watchers Tuesday, SK’s deal with LG reflects SK G

Jan. 24, 2017

‘Pokemon Go’ officially launches in Korea

The hit augmented reality mobile game “Pokemon Go,” which took the world by storm last year, was officially released in South Korea on Tuesday. 　Available in Korean, “Pokemon Go” can be downloaded on the Google Play store and Apple’s App Store.　“Pokemon Go,” released in global markets including the US in July 2016, is a GPS-based mobile game that involves users walking to real-life locations to capture virtual monsters, such as the famous character Pikachu, via their smartphones.  (Niantic)　It u

Jan. 24, 2017

LG Display swings to black in Q4

LG Display Co., a flat panel maker, said Tuesday that it swung to the black in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, largely thanks to a rise in panel prices and a diversified product portfolio.Its net profit reached 825 billion won ($706 million) in the October-December period, compared with a loss of 13.5 billion won a year earlier, it said in a regulatory filing.Operating income shot up to 904 billion won in the fourth quarter from 60.6 billion won a year earlier, and sales increased 5.9 pe

Jan. 24, 2017

(Urgent) Samsung Electronics reports 50% jump in Q4 operating profit

Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday its operating profit for the fourth quarter of 2016 jumped 50.11 percent on year, thanks to rising prices of semiconductors and display panels. Operating profit, which excludes income from subsidiaries, stood at 9.2 trillion won ($7.89 billion) for the October-December period last year, compared with 6.14 trillion won for the same quarter in 2015, Samsung said in a regulatory filing.  (Yonhap)Compared with a quarter earlier, fourth-quarter operating profit su

Jan. 24, 2017

Samsung seeks fresh start after disclosing cause of Note 7 fires

Samsung Electronics on Monday admitted its mistake and provided a detailed explanation about the technical faults of its flagship smartphone, in an apparent effort to regain trust from consumers across the globe and start afresh. At a lengthy press conference, the tech giant’s CEO Koh Dong-jin made a public apology about the battery defect in the Galaxy Note 7, with overseas experts endorsing the test results along with him. It was the first time for Samsung to disclose research jointly carried

Jan. 23, 2017

Samsung blames faulty batteries for Note 7 fires

Samsung Electronics has blamed battery malfunctions for the Galaxy Note 7 catching fire, ending widespread speculations that the explosions were caused by the device’s hardware or software.Since sales of the fire-prone Note 7 were discontinued in October, there have been several media reports attributing the device’s hardware design to the explosions -- alongside battery faults -- as Samsung excessively squeezed too many parts, such as a bigger battery, waterproof and dustproof features and iris

Jan. 23, 2017

Can AI replace doctors?

IBM’s supercomputer Watson, an artificial intelligence-based cognitive computing program, is receiving mixed reviews a month after being introduced to Korean medical institutions.　Gachon University Gil Medical Center in Incheon became the first medical institute in Korea to utilize artificial intelligence to examine and treat cancer patients since October. 　Over the past 12 days, the hospital said Watson has been used to diagnose 85 cancer patients, receiving positive reviews from both patients

Jan. 23, 2017

SKT tests China’s Huawei LTE equipment amid controversy

South Korea’s No. 1 mobile carrier SK Telecom has purchased Long Term Evolution network equipment produced by China’s Huawei Technologies for testing before signing a final deal, amid concerns over hacking risks and Korean suppliers losing competitiveness, according to sources Sunday. An industry source familiar with the matter told The Korea Herald that SKT ordered the Digital Unit and Remote Radio Head, known as DU&RRH in industrial terminology, from Huawei last month to conduct a set of quali

Jan. 22, 2017

Toshiba’s chip spin-off to narrow gap with Samsung: Mirae Asset

Toshiba’s possible spin-off of its chip business will narrow the technology and market share gap with its bigger rival Samsung Electronics, Mirae Asset Daewoo Securities predicted Friday. Toshiba, which is struggling from massive losses in its nuclear business, is mulling spinning off its lucrative NAND flash unit and selling the stake to its bigger chip rival Western Digital, according to news reports.  (Toshiba)“If the spin-off is confirmed, the financial condition of Toshiba’s chip unit will

Jan. 20, 2017

Budget smartphones filling gap left by premium phones in Korea

Korean tech firms and telecom operators are filling in the gap left by flagship smartphones with their low cost products. The next premium smartphones, including Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and LG’s G6, are scheduled to launch after February.Samsung Electronics said it began sales its low cost Galaxy A5 on Thursday for 550,000 won ($467) in Korea. This is around half the price of its flagship smartphone Galaxy S series, which are sold for around 1 million won. Despite the low price, the device still fea

Jan. 19, 2017

Samsung launches wind-free air conditioner in Europe

Samsung Electronics has launched its signature wind-free air conditioner in Europe, the company announced Thursday. European consumers try out the wall-mounted wind-free air conditioner by Samsung Electronics at The Mall in Milan, Italy on Wednesday. (Samsung Electronics)The South Korean home appliance maker introduced the wall-mounted wind-free air conditioner that won the Innovation Award at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month to European consumers at a launch ceremony at The Mall

Jan. 19, 2017

LG to unveil G6 in Barcelona next month

LG Electronics is planning to unveil its next flagship smartphone model, likely to be the G6, at the Mobile World Congress at noon on Feb. 26.On Thursday, the smartphone maker sent out an invitation to journalists around the world for the launch of a new smartphone in Barcelona next month. An invitation for G6 launch (LG Electronics)In the invitation, LG wrote “See More, Play More,” giving the implication its new product is focused on entertainment functions and user convenience. The G6 will hav

Jan. 19, 2017

Antibiotics prescription for infants much higher in South Korea: report

South Korean infants are prescribed antibiotics in much higher frequency than those in other countries, the latest research report said Thursday, confirming concerns in the medical community of serious misuse that could hurt the immune system.The results show South Korean toddlers on average are prescribed antibiotics 3.41 times by the time they reach the age of two, way higher than the five other countries -- Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain and the United States -- surveyed for the report. The pr

Jan. 19, 2017

Galaxy S8 may adopt largest ever 5.7-inch panel

Samsung Electronics is expected to adopt the largest panels for its upcoming Galaxy S series to be unveiled in April, according to multiple news reports Wednesday.  (Samsung)Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus will reportedly come with 5.7-inch (14.5-centimeter) and 6.2-inch (15.7-cm) panels, which are larger than their predecessors Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, which came with 5.1-inch (13-cm) and 5.5-inch (14-cm) screens. The larger panels appear to be possible as the new devices will have the tiniest bezels -- th

Jan. 18, 2017

LG launches cooling, heating module

LG Innotek on Wednesday announced it had successfully carried out mass production of a thermoelectric module, a cutting-edge component that provides both cooling and heating functions.As the component is small and light, it can help improve the design and convenience of products such as home appliances and automobiles that need both cooling and heating functions, the company said in a press release.A thermoelectric module is an electronic cooling and heating component that controls temperature b

Jan. 18, 2017

Samsung supplies flagship Exynos processors for Audi

Samsung Electronics on Wednesday announced it will start providing its flagship Exynos processors for German automaker, signaling the world’s top chipmaker’s entry into chips for cars. The supply contract was made as part of Samsung’s participation in the Audi Progressive SemiConductor Program, known as PSCP, as a partner supplier of the Exynos processors, its own System-on-Chip solution, for the automaker’s next-generation In Vehicle Infotainment system.  Exynos processor (Samsung Electronics)A

Jan. 18, 2017

Korea to increase 5G network bandwidth

South Korea will increase the bandwidth allocated for the fifth-generation network by 2018 to accommodate sharply increasing data traffic, the science ministry said Wednesday.The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said it will newly secure the bandwidth up to 1,300 megahertz and allocate the parts to the country's three mobile carriers.The plan was finalized during a government meeting presided over by Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho, the ministry said. "The ministry will form a team within

Jan. 18, 2017

KT debuts audio visual AI platform Genie

KT, the second-largest mobile carrier in South Korea, on Tuesday unveiled an artificial intelligence-based Internet Protocol television set-top box with an aim to realize smart home system centering on TV. Named “GiGA Genie,” the AI platform looks like an ordinary speaker. The 28-centimeter-tall device resembling a spaceship is equipped with Harman Kardon’s 20-watt woofer and 15-watt tweeter. It also has a 6-megapixel camera that will help maximize the sound effect with visual images and better

Jan. 17, 2017

Samsung, LG ‘intimidated by Chinese firms’ at the CES

Executives from Korea’s biggest tech firms told top policymakers that they were intimidated by Chinese companies’ improved home appliance technology unveiled at the latest Consumer Electronics Show."We were intimidated to see improved hardware technologies of Chinese firms at the event," said Lee Min, an executive at Samsung Electronics’ television business unit at a briefing attended by the ICT minister and eight tech firms on Monday."Although they are still behind us in terms of providing cust

Jan. 17, 2017