S. Korea emerges key market for YouTube: official

U.S.-based YouTube, a global video-sharing site marking its 10th anniversary this year, said Tuesday South Korea has become one of its key markets, expecting further growth in the local online video streaming market on the back of the mobile-ridden local users.     The U.S. video-sharing giant started its Korean-language service in 2008.  "Korea has always been an exciting market for us. It was one of the first countries we launched in. And the success we have seen here is great. We have seen an

May 19, 2015

Global shipments of Galaxy S6 series top 10 mln

South Korea's top tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday its global shipments of the latest flagship Galaxy S6 models surpassed 10 million units in about one month after their release.  "The sales of the Galaxy S6 series have already surpassed 10 million," a high-ranking Samsung official said. It marked the first time for the company to confirm the sales figure of the latest flagship.   The Galaxy S6 boasts Samsung's first built-in wireless-charging batteries. The offbeat Galaxy S6 Edge

May 19, 2015

LG to release new mid-end G4 lineup

LG Electronics Inc. will roll out two mid-tier smartphones that were spun off from its flagship G4 in global markets starting later this month, the company said Tuesday, as it seeks to bolster overseas sales of the latest models.   The G4 Stylus, which touts a slightly larger screen of 5.7 inches than the 5.5-inch G4, will hit shelves in North America, Europe, and Central and South America starting in late May, LG said in a statement.   It comes with a rubber pen accessory that helps consumers s

May 19, 2015

Gov't warns of possible nicotine overdose thru use of e-cigarettes

The South Korean government warned of a possible overdose of nicotine for those who smoke electronic cigarettes Tuesday, while ordering a recall of 10 e-cigarettes over defective power cord plugs that may cause a fire or electric shock.  The 10 electric cord plugs of e-cigarettes subject to a recall contain a defective electrical insulator that may break down when exposed to an alternating current of over 3,000 volts, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.  All 10 products are

May 19, 2015

Hyundai Motor names former Samsung exec as IT chief

Hyundai Motor Group, which owns Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, said Monday it has promoted senior vice president Hwang Seung-ho as the carmaker’s new IT chief. Hwang, a former Samsung Electronics executive, joined Hyundai last year and has led the development of the carmaker’s Bluelink telematics systems and related services. As the new head of Hyundai’s automotive IT development center, he is expected to oversee key projects, including the commercialization of its self-driving car technology. Hi

May 18, 2015

Samsung, LG increase R&D spending

South Korean tech giants Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics have been ramping up efforts to find new cash cows with their quarterly R&D expenditure-sales ratio reaching an all-time high during the January-March period this year, according to their quarterly reports released Monday.Despite a sales decrease in the first quarter this year ― from 54 trillion won in the first quarter last year to 47 trillion won ― Samsung spent 3.8 trillion won ($3.5 billion) for R&D. This only slightly down from

May 18, 2015

Olympus Korea launches new CSR program for young patients

Olympus Korea announced Monday a new corporate social responsibility program, “I am Camera,” to support art activities of young patients at hospitals. Starting at Yonsei University’s Severance Hospital, the 10-week program will tour four hospitals this year. Artists and photographers will join to help young patients express themselves and explore diverse subjects through photography. “We hope participating students broaden their perspective outside the hospital and have a fresh opportunity to co

May 18, 2015

Next-generation ultra HD TV expected to be available from 2018: report

The next-generation of ultra-high definition TV adopting the highest resolution technology is expected to be available for consumers from 2018, with South Korean TV makers forecast to push for its mass-production, a report said Monday.      Given that a new cycle for an upgrade in a display panel comes around every six years, global TV manufacturers will likely adopt the so-called 8K resolution technology as a new standard in the market from 2018, according to a report by market tracker DisplayS

May 18, 2015

Samsung loses ground in tablet market in Q1

Major electronics brands Apple and Samsung saw their shares in the global tablet PC market plunge in the first quarter of 2015, data showed Monday, dented by the rise of Chinese companies tapping deeper into the "white box" segment.U.S. tech giant Apple Inc. accounted for 24.3 percent of the global market for tablet PCs in the January-March period, down from 28.9 percent posted a year earlier, the data compiled by industry tracker Strategy Analytics showed.Samsung Electronics Co., South Korea's

May 18, 2015

Park honors Ebola relief team

President Park Geun-hye has awarded medals to 24 health care professionals for completing a nearly three-month Ebola relief mission in Sierra Leone. “I was deeply touched to find out that so many health care professionals applied for this mission in spite of the potential risks,” Park told the health care workers during the ceremony at Cheong Wa Dae last Friday. “We believe philanthropy requires courage. I am convinced that the completion of this mission has been indebted to your courageous deci

May 17, 2015

Antitrust regulator increases vigilance on IT industry

South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission is increasing vigilance on big tech firms for possible antitrust actions using their dominance in the market, officials said Sunday. According to FTC officials, a special task force, which was launched early this year to focus its surveillance on the tech industry, was looking into two new cases following its ongoing probe into U.S. software giant Oracle. Amid growing speculation about another round of antitrust probes, industry watchers predicted Apple and Go

May 17, 2015

S. Korea's IT exports to China slow sharply in 2014

South Korea's exports of information technology and electronics goods to China slowed sharply in2014 as the world's No. 2 economy relied more on local products and technologies, a report showed Thursday. Shipments of South Korean tech products to China edged up 1.4 percent on-year to US$103.7 billion last year, far lower than the15.8 percent surge in 2013, according to the report by the Shanghai office of the Korea International Trade Association.In line with the change in China's policy, the gr

May 14, 2015

S. Korea ranks No. 1 in global mobile app usage: report

South Korea has trumped other major countries in terms of mobile application usage, with smartphone owners in the country spending most of their time on social messengers, a report showed Thursday. The index gauging the mobile data usage by South Korean smartphone users reached 125 in the first quarter, outpacing the United States' 100 and the 90 held by Japan, according to the latest report by online-based global mobile app tracker App Annie. Britain and Germany trailed with 80 and 70, respecti

May 14, 2015

Galaxy S6 less attractive than its predecessor: U.S. consumer agency

Samsung Electronics Co.'s latest flagship Galaxy S6 smartphone lags behind its predecessor, the Galaxy S5, in most performance reviews, a U.S. consumer agency said Thursday, with the new model less attractive to users who want to find alternatives to Apple Inc.'s iPhones.According to U.S.-based Consumer Reports, a non-profit organization that grades products for consumers' rights, Samsung's Galaxy S5 released last year topped the list of smartphones studied, outpacing its upgraded version in ter

May 14, 2015