[THE INVESTOR] Korea has decided to opt for ATSC 3.0, a technology standard in the US for ultra-high definition broadcasting, over the European standard DVB-T2, the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said July 26.Most of the TVs made by Korean TV makers including Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are based on the European standard, a relatively outdated technology compared to the US counterpart.Samsung Electronics’ 105-inch UHD TV / Samsung ElectronicsAs a result, many of those wh

Technology July 26, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] The servers of leading Korean e-commerce firm Interpark were hacked, compromising its customers’ personal information including email addresses, and phone numbers, according to news reports July 26.A group of hackers, who accessed the firm’s servers with overseas IPs, stole around 10.3 million pieces of personal data in May. A notice posted on the Interpark internet homepageThe hackers reportedly sent emails with malicious codes to Interpark employees and got access to the sensiti

Technology July 26, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] A series of legal complaints have been filed against Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee after video clips showing him allegedly buying sex services were revealed last week, according to news reports on July 25.A man in his 50s lodged a complaint on July 22 at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office in Seoul, asking for an investigation into the sex scandal.Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-heeThe case has been transferred to the Seoul District Prosecutors’ Office. A civic group h

July 25, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] LG Electronics said it would spend 30-50 percent more on-year for research and development into key components of washing machines and air conditioners to maintain its competitiveness in the home appliance market. “The motor and compressor plays a vital role in our home appliance business, so we will invest accordingly,” said Park Jung-hyun, vice president of LG’s compressor and motor business unit at a press meeting in South Gyeongsang Province last week.  LG Electronics employee

Technology July 25, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Naver, the parent firm of mobile messenger operator LINE, said July 27 that an investors conference for the messenger firm will be held from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on July 27 in Tokyo after the second-quarter earnings report is announced at around 3 p.m. on the same day.The InvestorThe mobile messenger company went public on July 5 in Tokyo and New York and its stock price closed up 4.18 percent at 4,110 yen (US$38.70) on July 25.(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)

July 25, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] A man in his 30s drove his car into the Korean head office of online game company Nexon in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, on July 24.A part of the glass wall on the first floor was smashed into pieces, but no injuries were reported. The man, whose nationality is reportedly Chinese, drove while intoxicated. He said in a police interrogation that he was infuriated at Nexon’s online games to which he was so addicted that he could not live an ordinary life.“The person who vandalized the o

Technology July 25, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] LG Electronics said it would spend 30-50 percent more on-year for research and development into key components of washing machines and air conditioners to maintain its competitiveness in the home appliance market. “The motor and compressor plays a vital role in our home appliance business, so we will invest accordingly,” said Park Jung-hyun, vice president of LG’s compressor and motor business unit at a press meeting in South Gyeongsang Province last week. LG Electronics employees

Technology July 25, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics’ stock lost 1.75 percent to close at 1,516,000 won (US$1,335.60) on July 22 in the wake of a recent sex scandal involving the firm’s chairman Lee Kun-hee.Samsung’s share has recently been on an upward trend after crossing the 1.5 million won threshold on July 11 for the first time since 2015. The firm’s stock price continued to rise for seven straight trading days since July 14. Some analysts painted a rosy picture, even anticipating that the price could hit an

July 22, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] Electronic components firm Samsung Electro-Mechanics said on July 22 that it would invest 263.2 billion won (US$231.90 million) in beefing up its capability in chip packaging, an encapsulation process aimed at preventing erosion and damage.The investment amount accounts for 6.1 percent of the firm’s equity. Through the investment, Samsung Electro-Mechanics will develop the next-generation chip packaging facilities, which will be deployed at Samsung Display’s manufacturing complex

Technology July 22, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] A consumer group claimed on July 21 that South Korea’s three largest mobile carriers --SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus -- have made excessive profits by overpricing USIM chips for smartphones.“Utilizing their monopolistic position in the mobile market, the three firms are alleged to have earned 117.3 billion won (US$103.20 million) of unjust profits over the past two years and three months,” said Green Consumer Network in Korea. The head office of SK Telecom in Seoul The figure is bas

Technology July 22, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] The Fair Trade Commission, the nation’s antitrust regulator, raided Internet giant Google’s Korean head office in Gangnam on July 21 as part of its investigation into allegations that the global Internet giant twisted the arms of local smartphone-makers -- Samsung and LG -- to preinstall its apps on their handsets. Google is also accused of pressuring local mobile game developers to utilize AdMob, a game ad platform run by Google. The firm, whose Android operating system has an ov

Technology July 22, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] The first virtual reality cafe in the country will be set up in Gangnam, a posh shopping and business district in southern Seoul.Named VR Plus Show Room, the cafe will open on July 22. It will be fitted with 102 desktops, four Oculus Rifts, and four HTC Vibes.A private firm called VR Plus will run the cafe, and is expected to offer a range of virtual reality content free of charge for an unspecified period of time.“I hope the first VR cafe will become a venue where users and virtu

Technology July 21, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] South Korean tech giant LG Electronics has recently completed the relocation of its European headquarters from London to Germany’s Eschborn, an official from the tech firm said on Thursday. “LG has already completed the relocation process of the European head office to Germany,” Cho Joong-kwon, an LG Electronics spokesperson, said.  LG Electronics’ head office in Seoul. (Yonhap)The relocation marked the second of its kind in less than a year since the firm announced its plan to mo

Technology July 21, 2016

[THE INVESTOR] LG Group’s two key affiliates LG Electronics and LG Display released their sustainability reports on July 21.In the latest annual reports, the companies provide the details of their current business operations, on-going and future efforts to reduce greenhouse gasses, and corporate social responsibility activities.LG Electronics said in its press release that the number of executives and employees participating in CSR activities increased from 27,888 in 2005 to 93,659 in 2015 and r

Technology July 21, 2016