From the red and blue shortcut buttons with Netflix and Disney+ logos to fancier features and operating systems, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, the world’s top two TV makers, are pouring resources into content, not just hardware itself, to elevate profits. Remote control devices have become "billboards" for the streaming giants, in the words LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan, after Netflix started paying major TV manufacturers advertisement fees to include their shortcut bu

Industry March 25, 2024

The race for leadership in the burgeoning high bandwidth memory chips market is growing fiercer, as Nvidia revealed its plan to secure orders for the cutting-edge component from Samsung Electronics, the Korean chip giant seeking to outsmart crosstown rival SK hynix. At a media briefing last week, Jensen Huang, the co-founder and CEO of Nvidia, openly endorsed Samsung Electronics and unveiled the company's plan to use the Korean chipmaker's HBM chips in the future. US-based Nvidia is the biggest

Industry March 24, 2024

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are seen to be renewing their decadeslong competition in the home appliance market with their first all-in-one washer-dryer machines, which combined the two full-capacity laundry machines to complete the entire laundry process in one step. Both Samsung and LG first unveiled their new single-drum laundry machines at the IFA trade show in Germany in August last year, each claiming their products hold superiority over the other. Samsung presented the Bespoke A

Industry March 19, 2024

James Dyson, the founder and senior engineer of UK home appliance giant Dyson, visited Seoul on Monday to unveil the company’s new hair dryer, the Dyson Supersonic Nural. The new hair dryer, which is designed to better protect hair and the scalp from heat, made its global debut in Korea, one of the brand’s top-selling markets. The 76-year-old Dyson founder showed his appreciation for the local market as he took the stage to introduce the new machine in person. “What we are tryi

Industry March 18, 2024

Samsung Electro-Mechanics is set to start mass production of “weatherproof” camera modules with cutting-edge water-repellent capabilities and heating features for cars this year, the company said Sunday. In the wake of growing demand for enhanced image quality in automotive assistance features and the development of autonomous driving technology, Samsung aims to expand its presence in the camera module industry with its advanced technologies. "Accidents occur when camera sensors

Industry March 17, 2024

Samsung C&T has made it through a challenging proxy season with its shareholders backing its 10 percent increase plan for dividend payouts, averting resistance from activist funds that called for significantly higher returns. Its shares sank nearly 10 percent after the general shareholders meeting took place Friday. The company's proposal to pay a dividend of 2,550 won ($1.90) per common share and 2,600 won for each preferred share was approved. Among valid stocks with voting rights, 77

Industry March 15, 2024

The US Commerce Department is expected soon to announce the amount of federal funding it will spend to support Korean chipmakers building facilities on its land, the Korean trade minister said on Tuesday, US time. “The US government is expected to announce the subsidy plan for Korean firms as soon as around the end of March,” Minister for Trade Jeong In-kyo told reporters at Dallas International Airport in Texas, as he was traveling to the country for the first time after having been

Industry March 13, 2024

LG Electronics is making a strategic investment in Bear Robotics in the US in a move to expedite the advancement of its commercial service robotics, the company said Tuesday. The tech giant said it has executed a stock purchase agreement to acquire a stake in Bear Robotics, a prominent Silicon Valley-based startup specializing in artificial intelligence-driven autonomous service robots, through an investment of $60 million. LG’s strategic investment comes as the company is preparing for a

Industry March 12, 2024

South Korea will take back its sales lead in the global display market by 2027 with its technological edge, Samsung Display CEO Choi Joo-sun said Thursday upon his appointment as the new head of the Korea Display Industry Association. Choi vowed to boost the Korean industry's standing on the global stage through close collaboration with the government during his three-year term. "The Chinese government is spending a huge sum of money to foster its domestic display panel industry. So I

Industry March 8, 2024

In the wake of heated competition for chip supremacy, a Seoul court has stepped in to block a former chip researcher involved in chip design at SK hynix from working for US-based rival Micron Technology, alleging possible technology leaks. According to industry sources on Thursday, Seoul Central District Court granted permission to an injunction request filed by SK hynix late last month to prevent the former researcher from working for another company, and ordered the executive to pay 10 milli

Industry March 7, 2024

Samsung Electronics' foundry division is expected to get a boost as Google reportedly plans to build its new Tensor G4 chipset based on Samsung’s latest Exynos 2400 blueprint, according to industry sources on Wednesday. Google's new Pixel 9 smartphone is set to launch in the latter half of this year, and it is highly anticipated to incorporate the upcoming Tensor G4 chipset. SamMobile and other industry sources predict Samsung Foundry to produce Google's new chipset leveragi

Industry March 6, 2024

Korean internet giant Naver said Tuesday that it is debuting the world’s first web platform-enabled operating system for robots, called “Arc mind,” at this week’s LEAP 2024, a tech trade show held in Saudi Arabia. The company said the new platform combines the web platform technology of Naver Cloud’s Whale and the robotics software technology of Naver Labs. "Team Naver has continuously expanded its tech portfolio from web platform to robotics software by develo

Industry March 5, 2024

SK hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chipmaker, on Monday denied Japanese reports that the Korean government pressured the company to support the merger of its rival chipmakers, Western Digital and Kioxia Holdings. Japanese news outlets, including Asahi Shimbun, citing unidentified sources, reported that Western Digital of the US and Kioxia of Japan, the world’s No. 3 and 4 memory chipmakers, are resuming their merger talks in April. In the deal process, they added, SK hynix,

Industry March 5, 2024

LG Display confirmed Monday that it is issuing new shares to raise 1.29 trillion won ($970 million) to bolster investments in OLED displays for smartphones and other mobile gadgets while improving its financial stability. The move comes as the display maker has recently recovered from operating losses. In a regulatory filing earlier in the day, the company said it is issuing new shares at 9,090 won apiece, which is lower than the 10,070 won fixed in the previous capital increase in January. The

Industry March 4, 2024

Following the high-profile visit of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg this week, stocks related to advanced technologies including artificial intelligence, augmented reality and display panels are gaining attention. In a report on Friday, Korea Investment and Securities suggested eight stocks, including Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, that would benefit from Zuckerberg's visit to Seoul. Traveling to Korea for the first time in about a decade, Zuckerberg met with President Yoon Suk Yeol and b

Industry March 1, 2024