5G smartphone chip about twice as expensive as 4G: JP Morgan

US investment bank JP Morgan has estimated that the price of chips for 5G-powered smartphones would be twice as much as those for 4G-based handsets, a Seoul-based research institute said Monday. According to the Institute for Information and Communication Technology Promotion, JP Morgan said in its 2018 report that the average price of various chips powering 5G handsets would be about 1.85 higher than for smartphones using the 4G Long-Term Evolution network.Titled “5g Smartphone: The Next Big Th

April 29, 2019

SK Broadband offers TV home schooling service for kids

SK Broadband, the No. 1 internet protocol TV service provider, is diversifying its content platform by offering dynamic interactive academic programs for toddlers as well as older children.Aiming to become a lifestyle service provider, the home broadband network company has enhanced its lineup of kids’ content with a TV-based home schooling program titled Play Songs Home.In partnership with music therapists and with local kindergarten operator Play Songs, SK Broadband developed the musical progr

April 28, 2019

Samsung SDI learns about innovation from Busan-based fish cake firm

Samsung SDI, one of the nation’s largest battery maker, sought to learn from a local fish-cake maker based in Busan, in an effort to innovate its operation and business strategies.Executives and employees of the battery firm looked at the example of family-run fish-cake maker Samjin Eomuk, which has survived financial difficulties and achieved market success by changing its strategy from business-to-business to business-to-customer.Samjin Eomuk was a small supplier of filleted fish on the brink

April 28, 2019

S. Korea to spend 300 bln won to develop midsized next-generation satellites

South Korea will spend 300 billion won ($264 million) on developing three medium-sized next-generation satellites to improve the country's knowledge of space science and permit better management of agricultural resources and the environment, the science ministry said Sunday.The 2019-2025 plan approved by the National Space Committee calls for the private sector, with the support of the government, to place locally built, high performance satellites weighing around 500 kilograms into Earth's orbi

April 28, 2019

Galaxy S10 5G priced higher in US than in Korea

　Samsung’s first 5G-powered smartphone is expected to carry a higher price tag in the United States than in South Korea. 　US mobile carrier Verizon said Thursday that it had begun preorders for the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, which will hit Verizon stores May 16. The 256 GB option costs $1,300 and the 512 GB option is $1,400. 　But in Korea, where the model became available April 5 after the rollout of 5G commercial services here, the 256 GB model costs about 1.39 million won ($1,205), with the 512 GB

April 26, 2019

After boom, Korean chipmakers face disappointing Q1 earnings

The first-quarter earnings report released Thursday by SK hynix brought to light the worse-than-expected situation of South Korea’s memory chipmakers and the resulting impact on the country’s export-driven economy. SK hynix reported in its regulatory filing that it had achieved 6.77 trillion won ($5.83 billion) in sales and 1.36 trillion won in operating profit during the January to March period -- plunges of 22 percent and 69 percent year-on-year, respectively. On-year, the company saw 30 perce

April 25, 2019

Naver’s Q1 operating profit falls nearly 20 percent

　South Korean internet giant Naver announced Thursday its operating profit fell nearly 20 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, as the company has witnessed worsened profitability following aggressive investment in new business overseas. 　In its quarterly earnings report, Naver said its operating profit reached 206.2 billion won ($177 million) in the January-March period. During the same period last year, operating profit was 257 billion won. 　The tech company’s reduced operating pro

April 25, 2019

Yonsei University unveils plan with Samsung to nurture talent

A South Korean university is launching a new department in cooperation with Samsung Electronics to nurture future talent in the field of system chips. Yonsei University said Thursday it would open a system chip engineering department starting from the class of 2021, in partnership with Samsung Electronics. The undergraduate program, funded by South Korea’s biggest chipmaker, is designed to educate future talent under the condition that all students will be hired by the company as soon as they gr

April 25, 2019

Netflix decides against cheaper subscription in Korea

　Global streaming service Netflix said Wednesday it has concluded its trial of mobile-only subscription plans for South Koreans users, signaling it will not roll out the pricing scheme that is cheaper than current membership plans.　“The tests have concluded,” Netflix said in a statement sent to the The Korea Herald. “These tests we conduct may not get rolled out as member plans. Netflix will continue its efforts to provide the best entertainment experience for its members.”　Netflix said last wee

April 24, 2019

KMS given Presidential Award for fire-extinguishing IoT system

KMS, which specializes in internet of things solutions for fire safety and prevention, received the Presidential Award for its automatic fire-extinguishing system at the 11th Industrial Safety Awards this year, the venture company said Wednesday. (KMS)NAGA Fireguard is an IoT-based automatic fire-extinguishing sensor that allows real-time monitoring and prevention of fire. Installed in places that are often difficult to reach or dangerous, such as underground communal areas or high-voltage elect

April 24, 2019

Over 90% of Koreans to have 5G access by 2019: ICT Ministry

 　The South Korean government said Wednesday it will expand coverage of the fifth-generation wireless network, with a goal of providing the service to more than 90 percent of the population by the end of this year. 　A day after the meeting with mobile carriers Tuesday, the Ministry of Science and ICT said the carriers had pledged to build a total of 230,000 5G base stations in 85 cities, covering 93 percent of Korea’s total population of around 51 million. 　According to the ministry, 50,512 5G s

April 24, 2019

Samsung aims to become No. 1 IDM by 2030 with W133tr investment

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday that it would invest a total of 133 trillion won ($115.7 billion) by 2030 to become the world’s No. 1 integrated device manufacturer by strengthening its competitiveness in the foundry and system-on-chip segments. The investment plan was announced a month after President Moon Jae-in ordered the government to take steps to boost the country’s competitiveness in the global non-memory market, amid growing worries about falling exports of memory semiconductors as t

April 24, 2019

Naver’s Papago more popular than Google Translate among Koreans

South Korean tech giant Naver said Tuesday its translation service has become more popular than that of Google among South Korean users, with the number of people using Naver’s Papago app surpassing the Google Translate app by up to a million. According to data from local market research firm App Annie, the number of monthly active users for Papago reached about 5.65 million in March, while 4.73 million people used Google Translate in Korea. According to Naver’s statistics, also released by the

April 23, 2019

KT revamps pay TV services to compete with Netflix

With the global streaming service Netflix gaining popularity among South Koreans by offering original content, the country’s major telecom firm KT has revamped its pay TV services to prevent subscribers from cutting the cord. During a press conference Tuesday, KT said its Internet Protocol TV service, Olleh TV, had updated its list of films not released in Korean theaters. The premium content is available for 10,000 won ($8.77) per movie through a service called Olleh TV Choice.  (Yonhap)While d

April 23, 2019

Chip industry closely watching SK hynix’s decision on MagnaChip bid

South Korea’s chipmaking industry is watching closely an ongoing bid for the foundry business and fabrication line of MagnaChip, which was formerly owned by SK hynix, according to the industry on Tuesday. Officials in the semiconductor industry have named SK hynix as one of the most likely candidates for the acquisition of the foundry business and factory of MagnaChip, based in Cheongju, North Chuncheong Province, in the vicinity of SK hynix’s M15 memory chip plant. MagnaChip, which saw $751 mil

April 23, 2019

[Non-memory Korea: 4] FPGA inventor Xilinx offers lesson to Korea in non-memory chip challenge

Xilinx, a San Jose-based system-on-chip business established 35 years ago, refuses to be known merely as an SoC company.Senior officials of the $2.7 billion US firm proudly introduce Xilinx as the “inventor of the FPGA,” the highly flexible silicon integrated circuits that can be programmed after the manufacturing stage. “The reason why we call Xilinx the inventor is that the company makes what hasn’t existed before,” said David Ahn, head of Xilinx Korea. “Xilinx is a relatively small company wi

April 22, 2019

Huawei says Trump is being ‘narrow-minded’ in global 5G race

 　Huawei has criticized US President Donald Trump for being “narrow-minded” toward China’s growth in fifth-generation network technology, dismissing US security concerns over Chinese company’s equipment as “ungrounded.” 　　In an interview with Korean reporters last week, Huawei’s rotating Chairman Guo Ping said given the company’s global presence in the world telecommunications market, it would be “suicidal” for the company to implement backdoors in its equipment for espionage purposes. 　Referrin

April 22, 2019

Samsung postpones Galaxy Fold events in China to review screen problem

Samsung Electronics said Monday it would postpone media events scheduled for China this week in order to review the screen problem raised by US-based journalists. Samsung was going to hold media briefings in Hong Kong on Tuesday and Shanghai on Wednesday. The events were put off, according to a report by China’s National Daily Business as the media company was notified by Samsung’s Chinese branch.  (Samsung Electronics)“The media events for China will be rescheduled after reviewing the screen pr

April 22, 2019

South Korean mobile carriers admit 5G teething problems

 　With complaints increasing among local users as to the quality of the fifth-generation cellular network, the country’s mobile carriers have admitted their services failed to meet consumer expectations, pledging improved operations.　SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus have each publicly acknowledged their 5G networks had issues in delivery as some subscribers have been complaining their services are not as speedy and secure as advertised.　Faced with criticism ranging from low speeds to poor connectivit

April 21, 2019

Naver disapproves of Korean firms' dependence on foreign cloud-service platforms

　CHUNCHEON, Gangwon Province -- South Korean internet giant Naver on Thursday criticized local conglomerates for relying too much on foreign cloud-computing services, urging the government to help preserve “data sovereignty” in the finance and public sectors. 　During a meeting with reporters at its data center in Chuncheon, Gwangwon Province, Naver Business Platform CEO Park Won-ki said Samsung Electronics and other big companies have become overly dependent on global cloud-computing providers l

April 18, 2019