More S. Koreans using SNS platforms BAND, Instagram

More South Koreans are using Naver Corp.'s group-interaction service BAND and Instagram, although Facebook is still the most popular social networking service platform in the country, a survey showed Tuesday, signaling a shift in the local SNS landscape.According to the survey conducted by Digieco, an economic research institute run by mobile carrier KT Corp., and advertising agency Nas Media Corp., 73.8 percent of some 2,000 respondents in all age brackets used Facebook in 2016, slightly down f

May 31, 2016

Samsung TV wins best brand award in U.K.

Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics’ television lineup has been recognized as the best TV brand of the year by U.K. consumer magazine Which?, the company said Monday.The consumer magazine, which provides product reviews of consumer electronics, has awarded consumer electronics brands every year since 2007 through a series of rigorous research and product tests. Robert King, an executive at Samsung Electronics’ U.K. branch, receives an award at the best brand award held by U.K. magazine Which?

May 30, 2016

Qualcomm creates W57b start-up fund in Korea

Qualcomm Ventures, the investment unit of U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm, said Monday it has created a 57 billion won ($47.8 million) fund to nurture Korean start-ups in the fields of 5G, the Internet of Things, automobiles and other mobile services. The new fund comes as part of the company’s total 100 billion won investment plan into the Korean start-up scene that was announced during CEO Paul Jacob’s Seoul visit in July last year.  Qualcomm Ventures vice president Quinn Li (right) and Company K chai

May 30, 2016

SK Telecom builds first IoT-only network in Daegu

Network operator SK Telecom said Monday that it has completed the installation of Korea’s first network exclusively dedicated to the Internet of Things services across Daegu City.The IoT network, called the long-range wide area network or simply LoRa network, covers the entire city to provide connected services for the public. SK Telecom technicians work on a base station for the long-range wide area network in Daegu City. (SKT)SKT expects the IoT businesses to gain further momentum when the cit

May 30, 2016

‘Huawei eyes Samsung’s LTE patents’

Samsung Electronics and Huawei are bracing for a legal battle after the Chinese tech giant sued its Korean rival for infringing its mobile patents last week. In its two lawsuits filed in China and the U.S., Huawei claimed Samsung’s Galaxy S phones had infringed 11 of its 4G network patents. The company asked for compensation but did not request a sales ban of the affected handsets.  AP-YonhapSamsung fought back immediately, saying it would counter-sue Huawei. “What Huawei really wants is not cas

May 29, 2016

LIG Nex1 passes certification test for upgraded missile

LIG Nex1, an army and navy weapons systems developer, has successfully passed a quality certification test for its upgraded seeker system-installed surface-to-air guided missile Chiron, said the company on Sunday.Under the supervision of the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality and financial support from the Agency for Defense Development, LIG Nex1 added to the Chiron a Korean-made seeker system, which acts as the eyes and brain of the missile, as it locates its target by detecting infrared

May 29, 2016

[Photo News] Samsung 88-inch SUHD TV

Samsung Electronics on Sunday unveiled the 88-inch, 78-inch and 65-inch screen models of its latest SUHD TV that is based on the company’s quantum-dot liquid crystal display technology. (Samsung Electronics)

May 29, 2016

Global chipmakers seek future growth through collaboration

Global semiconductor players on Thursday released a joint statement in Seoul agreeing to work together to advance semiconductor technology over the next decades. SK hynix CEO Park Sung-wook (third from right) and other members of the World Semiconductor Council pose after signing the Seoul Declaration to promote the global chip industry`s growth. (KSIA)The representatives from China, Taiwan, the European Union, Japan, the U.S. and Korea gathered on Tuesday at the general meeting of the World Sem

May 27, 2016

Samsung introduces Batman-themed Galaxy smartphone

Tech giant Samsung Electronics rolled out another film-inspired mobile phone on Friday, continuing its years-long marketing efforts to boost sales of its flagship smartphones through collaboration with filmmakers.This time, the Korean smartphone maker released a Batman-themed smartphone, the Galaxy S7 edge Injustice Edition, in partnership with movie production company Warner Bros. and entertainment firm DC Entertainment, aiming to lure fans of the superhero movie.The release is also aimed at co

May 27, 2016

[Weekender] How chicken may or may not be ruining your health

Although “chi-maek” -- a word play referring to fried chicken and beer -- continues to be one of the most popular snacks among Koreans, some health experts have been warning on its harmful health effects.It is not the ingredient but the way it is cooked that can damage one’s body in different ways. (123RF)According to a long-term study by the Harvard School of Public Health, which examined more than 100,000 men and women over 25 years, people who ate fried food at least once per week had a great

May 27, 2016

[Photo News] Global chipmakers meet in Seoul

SK hynix CEO Park Sung-wook gives a welcome speech at a reception for the annual meeting of the World Semiconductor Council, a global institute for the world’s semiconductor industry, at the Shraton Grande Walkerhill Hotel in Seoul on Wednesday. Around 100 CEOs and top executives of chip companies, including Samsung Electronics, Intersil and GlobalFoundries, took part in the meeting held at the hotel on Thursday. (SK hynix)

May 26, 2016

CJ Hellovision taps into Vietnamese market

Cable TV operator CJ HelloVision said Thursday that it has signed a partnership deal with Vietnamese cable TV firm Saigontourist Cable Television, or SCTV, to export its broadcasting technology to Vietnam. Through the partnership, the Korean cable TV company will introduce its cloud-based broadcasting solutions, gigabit Internet services, UHD TV broadcasting technology and N-Screen -- a service which makes media content available on any digital device -- in Vietnam’s pay TV segment for the next

May 26, 2016

Samsung braces for patent war

The total number of patents that tech giant Samsung Electronics holds in the U.S. increased by more than fifteen times over the past nine years, according to the company on Thursday.Samsung’s patents registered at the U.S. patent office stood at 38,809 last year, up from 2,457 in 2007. An individual uses Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy S7. (Yonhap)In 2015 alone, Samsung obtained 5,072 patents in the nation, the second highest after tech firm IBM. Since 2006, Samsung has been the second most prolific

May 26, 2016

OLED panels to replace LCDs in smartphones: reports

Organic light-emitting diode display panels are forecast to replace liquid crystal display panels for smartphones, as Apple Inc. and other smartphone makers are moving to equip their smartphones with OLED display panels, reports showed Thursday.The global shipments of OLED display panels are expected to soar to 630 million units in 2019 from 250 million in 2015, according to a report by industry tracker IHS. The shipments of LCDs, in the meantime, are forecast to inch up from 1.29 billion to 1.3

May 26, 2016

More seniors accessing Internet through digital gadgets

More people in the older generations are connecting to the Internet through their smartphones and other digital gadgets, although their use of applications was fewer in number and diversity than younger age groups, a survey said Thursday.Nielsen KoreanClick, basing its findings on mobile behavioral data from October 2014 to April 2016, said 77 percent of South Koreans in their 50s-60s use the Internet through personal computers and mobile phones. This is an increase from 53 percent in 2013. The

May 26, 2016

[Newsmaker] Samsung to counter-sue Huawei

Samsung Electronics on Wednesday hinted that it might file a counter-suit against Huawei, which has sued the Korean company in the U.S. and China for infringing its technology patents. “We will take countermeasures, including a lawsuit (against Huawei),” Ahn Seong-ho, head of Samsung’s intellectual property division, told reporters after a weekly meeting of Samsung CEOs in Seoul. Samsung Group headquarters (Yonhap)His comment came after the Chinese equipment giant filed patent suits in Californi

May 25, 2016

LG Chem named top eco-friendly energy company

LG Chem, the chemicals and battery unit of LG Group, said Wednesday that it has been named a top environment-friendly energy company by a consultative body of energy ministers from 23 countries. The Clean Energy Ministerial, which discusses the development of clean energy sources and their wider adoption, will hold the awarding ceremony of its first Energy Management Leadership Award in San Francisco next month on the sideline of their seventh meeting. The award aims to honor companies for their

May 25, 2016

LG’s water purifier sales surge 50% in India

LG Electronics said Wednesday its water purifier sales in India soared 50 percent in the first quarter compared to a year ago, but did not reveal specific sales figures. LG entered India’s water purifier market in July 2014 -- the first time for a Korean company to do so -- tapping the nation’s burgeoning middle class who had complained about the poor condition of drinking water. A customer talks with a sales person about LG Electronics’ water purifier at a store in India. (LG Electronics)With i

May 25, 2016