[THE INVESTOR] Leading global DRAM-makers -- Samsung Electronics and SK hynix -- may face tough competition from 2018 as the mass production of Chinese chipmakers is predicted to raise oversupply concerns, according to industry reports. According to the latest report from market research firm IC Insights, the average selling price of DRAM, or dynamic random access memory, chips is expected to rise through the end of this year and into 2017 due to growing demand for enterprise systems -- for the

Aug. 16, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Renault Samsung’s mini electric car Twizy may be rolled out in South Korea as early as October, according to a local news report. The compact electric car has a top speed of 80 kilometers per hour and is able to cover a maximum of 100 kilometers on a single charge. Twizy (Renault Samsung)Twizy was previously not able to be released in the nation because of regulations on compact electric cars. In May, the Transport Ministry lifted these barriers amid rising demand for such cars an

Aug. 16, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Big Bang, Psy, 2NE1, iKON, Akdong Musician -- these are just a few of the performing artists under YG Entertainment run by Yang Hyun-seok, an influential producer of K-pop and a former member of Korea’s first hip-hop group Seo Taeji and the Boys. Established in 1998, YG Entertainment went public on the KOSDAQ in 2011. In the same year, the company created the joint venture YGEX with AVEX, one of the biggest entertainment businesses in Japan.YG EntertainmentThe company’s market val

Aug. 16, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung SDS’ share price has been steadily recovering from its lowest point in June. Since June 27 when the company’s share reached a record low of 132,000 won (US$119.60), the stock price increased 33.3 percent to close at 176,000 won on Aug. 12.The increase was partly thanks to the influx of foreign investment and the improved sentiment of investors, many of whom were disgruntled about the firm’s split-off plan of its businesses, according to market watchers.After the Samsung Gr

Aug. 12, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Online music streaming firm Bugs said Aug. 12 that it has acquired majority stake in Groovers, a lossless high-resolution audio file provider, in a bid to get competitive edge in the streaming music industry.Groovers offers high-definition audio files, such as FLAC, MQS and DSD.Bugs did not disclose the amount of the investment, only noting that it will hold 53.9 percent stake while its subsidiary iriver will hold 44.2 percent of Groovers.“Teaming up with Bugs, Groovers will compe

Aug. 12, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Leading global DRAM makers Samsung Electronics and SK hynix saw their DRAM sales increase in the April-June period despite prolonging downward pressure on prices, according to market research firm DRAMeXchange.Samsung’s DRAM business earned $4.32 billion in the second quarter this year, up 8.7 percent from a year earlier.SK hynix earned $2.41 billion in the same period, up 4 percent compared to last year while Micron of the US saw its DRAM revenue jump 8.8 percent to $1.73 billion

Aug. 12, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] The chief of Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor business division expects NAND flash memory chips with 100 layers of cells stacked inside to rollout in the global market soon.“Samsung, which rolled out the 24-layer V-NAND in August 2013, for the first time in the world, will start to mass-produce the 64-layer V-NAND chip by the end of this year. I believe the 1 terabit NAND flash will soon hit the market, and that means a chipmaker can stack up 100 layers of cells inside a chip,”

Aug. 12, 2016

[THE INVSETOR] South Korea’s telecom and media watchdog has fined Woowa Bros, the operator of mobile food delivery app Baedal Minjok, for mismanaging user data.The Korea Communications Commission said on Aug. 11 that it levied a 15-million-won (US$13,660) fine on the company, for failing to encrypt user data on its system for the app.The regulator also imposed a fine of 10 million won to 15 million won on nine companies for failing to implement proper protection measures for user data.The punish

Aug. 12, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics is mulling to double the memory capacity of its latest Galaxy Note 7, which comes in a 64 gigabyte memory option only, for Chinese consumers who prefer smartphones with large memory space.Samsung Galaxy Note 7“We are considering rolling out a 128GB model of the Galaxy Note 7 in China to compete with Chinese smartphone makers who are increasingly appealing with their large memory space,” said Samsung’s mobile business chief Koh Dong-jin during a media event for

Aug. 11, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics is teaming up with local banks and other financial institutions to offer mobile banking services using iris recognition for user authentication. “Shinhan Bank, Worri Bank, and KEB Hana Bank will roll out mobile banking services compatible with Samsung Pass from Aug. 19,” Koh Dong-jin, the chief of Samsung Electronics’ mobile communications business, said in a media event for the Galaxy Note 7 in Seoul on Aug. 11.A Samsung Electronics executive introduces the ir

Aug. 11, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s largest mobile messenger firm Kakao said in its regulatory filing on Aug. 11 that its operating profit in the April-June period increased 133 percent on-year to 26.6 billion won (US$24.20 million).The second-quarter revenue came in at 376.5 billion won in the same period, up 66.2 percent from a year earlier.In the regulatory filing, the company unveiled the sales of each of its three business categories – content platform, ad platform, and miscellaneous. Its content

Aug. 11, 2016