Merck introduces enhanced barrier materials for OLED

Merck said Wednesday it introduced new barrier materials that offer superior flexibility, higher reliability and longer lifespan in flexible OLED devices, when compared to existing solutions. Fully flexible OLED displays utilized in foldable, rollable and stretchable devices require a reduction of about 60 percent of the display module’s thickness when compared to standard displays. But because OLEDs are highly susceptible to degradation by moisture and oxygen, an encapsulation or barrier

May 31, 2023

Naver downed by traffic surge after NK launch

The mobile webpage of Naver, South Korea’s largest online portal, suffered a brief service disruption early Wednesday after North Korea launched what it called a military reconnaissance satellite. According to Naver, its the server went down for about five minutes, from 6:43 a.m. to 6:48 a.m. due to high traffic, soon after the Seoul Metropolitan Government issued an emergency alert text message urging people to prepare for evacuation at 6:41 a.m. The message said the city government had i

May 31, 2023

Boryung launches space initiative with global partners

South Korean health care company Boryung has launched a global space initiative to advance human activities in space with industry-leading partners, the company said Tuesday. Boryung has joined hands with Axiom Space, a US commercial space station developer, and the Space Exploration Initiative, a research institute at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for the Humans in Space program. The HIS program marks the second global-scale space project for Boryung, after the South Korean health

May 30, 2023

Users to confirm every targeted ad? Korean regulation in discussion

South Korea’s privacy watchdog is gearing up to post new guidelines next month mandating user consent for personalized online ads hosted by advertisers in Korea. Under the proposed regulation, currently being drafted by the Personal Information Protection Commission, users would be obliged to opt in or out of personalized ads each time they navigate a new online page, regardless of login and membership status. “Although such a guideline is being drafted, the details are not confirmed

May 30, 2023

SK Bioscience's homegrown COVID vaccine gets nod in UK

SK Bioscience announced on Tuesday that its COVID-19 vaccine SKYCovione received approval from the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. SKYCovione has been approved for first and second primary series doses for adults aged 18 and over in England, Scotland and Wales, SK Bioscience added. SKYCovione is a recombinant antigen-based COVID-19 vaccine, jointly developed with the Institute for Protein Design at the University of Washington. The vaccine also contains GlaxoSmithKline&rs

May 30, 2023

Is China feeling pressure from its own ban against Micron?

China appears to be feeling pressure of potential chip shortfall after banning US-based chipmaker Micron Technology from selling certain products to its market, and is calling for South Korean chipmakers to fill up the gap to meet its local chip demand, according to experts on Tuesday. Global Times, China’s state-run English media, said in an opinion piece on Monday it will be “natural” for South Korea’s chip companies to fill some market gap in China, if China and South

May 30, 2023

SK hynix’s Gen5 DDR5 DRAM enters validation process

SK hynix said Tuesday that it has completed the development of the industry’s most advanced 10-nanometer technology-based DDR5 DRAM for servers and has entered a validation process together with US chip giant Intel. The latest fifth-generation DDR5 DRAM is the first of its generation being tested at the Intel Data Center Certified memory program for DDR5 products to run on Intel Xeon Scalable platforms. The chips boast an operating speed of 6.4 gigabits per second, the fastest speed amon

May 30, 2023

Samsung self-repair service becomes available in Korea

Samsung Electronics said Monday it is offering a self-repair service program in South Korea for key products, including Galaxy smartphones, laptops and TVs, following the program's debut in the US last year. Under the program, the tech giant allows consumers to purchase parts and tools online to repair their devices themselves without having to visit a service center. The first products in the lineup for the service include the Galaxy S20, S21 and S22 smartphones, Galaxy Book Pro laptops an

May 30, 2023

SK bioscience's COVID-19 vaccine wins approval in Britain

SK bioscience Co., a pharmaceutical affiliate of South Korea's SK Group, said Tuesday its COVID-19 vaccine SKYCovione has won approval from British authorities. The British Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has approved the Korean vaccine for use as a primary vaccination in those aged 18 and over in the United Kingdom, according to the company. SK bioscience said it is SKYCovione's first permission outside Korea and it has become the eighth COVID-19 vaccine authoriz

May 30, 2023

[Photo News] LG's CSR in Africa

LG Electronics said Monday it recently donated energy-efficient air conditioners to a general hospital in Nigeria as part of its ongoing social contribution activities in the region. Africa, along with the Middle East, is one of the fastest-growing markets for the Korean tech giant. Its air conditioners alone posted more than 20 percent growth in sales last year.

May 29, 2023

[Beyond Earth] Korean lunar rover developer aims for first mission in 2032

South Korea’s consecutive successes with the homegrown Nuri rocket and lunar orbiter Danuri have led to the government’s ambitious road map to land on the moon in 2032 and on Mars in 2045. While the spotlight has been shining on rockets and satellites, less attention has been paid to the sector of space robotics. Unmanned Exploration Laboratory, a Korean startup led by a young CEO, is working relentlessly to develop lunar-roving vehicles as the country’s only player to make suc

May 29, 2023

5 Nuri rocket satellites make successful communication

  With South Korea’s homegrown Nuri rocket’s successful launch to space, five out of eight satellites carried on board made two-way communication with ground stations, the Ministry of Science and ICT said Friday. The country’s King Sejong Station in Antarctica received the first signal from the main payload NEXTSat-2 or second next-generation small satellite at 7:07 p.m. Thursday, according to the ministry. A ground station in Daejeon also made contact with the satellite a

May 26, 2023

Celltrion seeks approval for Stelara biosimilar in EU

Celltrion said Friday that the company has submitted a marketing authorization application for CT-P43, the company's ustekinumab biosimilar referencing Stelara, to the European Medicines Agency. Stelara is one of Janssen's top-selling drugs. In 2022, Stelara generated $9.7 billion in revenue, according to a report released by Statista. The global market for ustekinumab last year was estimated at $17.7 billion, Celltrion added. Celltrion said its CT-P43, like the reference drug Stelara,

May 26, 2023

Naver upgrades search engine with AI

South Korean internet giant Naver has carried out an extensive renewal of the interface of its search engine to maximize user experience for super-personalized results based on artificial intelligence, the company said Friday. Naver, which operates the country’s No. 1 web portal and search engine, said it has optimized the platform for AI search, responding to rising competition with the emergence of generative AI. Naver adopted the “Air Search” algorithm for its search engine

May 26, 2023

Korea launches 3rd Nuri rocket

GOHEUNG, South Jeolla Province -- South Korea successfully conducted the third launch of the homegrown Nuri rocket Thursday, as the satellite launch vehicle reached the targeted altitude and released satellites into orbit, marking another space milestone for the country. “Following the success of the Nuri rocket’s second launch last year, today’s third launch affirmed the Nuri rocket’s flight capability and secured reliability. At the same time, it was a chance to reaffir

May 25, 2023

LG starts mass production of EV chargers

LG Electronics said Thursday it has kicked off mass production of electric vehicle chargers, officially tapping into the burgeoning market. Celebrating the production of its first EV charger, the company introduced four new models in the works at a ceremony at LG Digital Park in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. During the event, the company announced the rebranding of its EV charger affiliate AppleMango to HiEV Charger. “The start of EV charger production marks a significant miles

May 25, 2023

Celltrion's Humira biosimilar gets FDA nod

Celltrion's adalimumab biosimilar CT-P17 has been approved the US Food and Drug Administration, the company announced Wednesday. CT-P17, also known as Yuflyma, is the world’s first high-concentration, low-volume and citrate-free biosimilar of Humira, an injectable treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune conditions. Celltrion said CT-P17 had been approved as a treatment for multiple chronic inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel diseas

May 25, 2023

Nuri rocket’s 3rd launch postponed

GOHEUNG, South Jeolla Province -- South Korea postponed the third launch of the homegrown Nuri rocket due to a software error during the preparation process, the Ministry of Science and ICT said Wednesday. “During the checkup on the low-temperature helium valve control, a problem occurred in the communication between computers that control the launch operation and the launch pad’s equipment. The valve itself did not have any issues as it could be operated manually. But once the valve

May 24, 2023

[H.eco Forum] 'We are in this together,' solidarity an essential pillar in overcoming climate crisis

Every problem regarding the environment cannot be solved by the actions of a single individual, but they should be tackled in unison among global citizens, according to environment experts at the H.eco Forum hosted by Herald Corp. on Wednesday. With some 130 participants ranging from environmental activists and business owners in the industry to students interested in the issue, the second session of the forum underscored the importance of solidarity when taking forward climate crisis matters. I

May 24, 2023

Naver suffers service malfunctions in China

South Korean internet giant Naver was reportedly suffering service malfunctions in major regions in China on Wednesday, fueling speculation that the Chinese authorities might be limiting people's access to the neighboring country’s dominant search engine. “We have confirmed that connection to our services, including using email and the search function, is not properly working there. But it is hard to tell for now whether China is intentionally blocking access or if it is just a

May 24, 2023