Allergan Korea said Thursday that it has named Kim Ji-hyun, who most recently worked as the general manager of Leo Pharma Korea, as its new CEO.　　Kim is a sales and management expert who has worked in various fields spanning the pharmaceutical, finance and consumer goods industries, serving executive roles for Gilead Sciences, AstraZeneca, HSBC and Mattel in Korea. 　She received her B.A. in mass communications and media studies from Sogang University and a M.S. in integrated marketing communicat

Industry May 17, 2018

South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Wednesday that it has approved the first artificial intelligence-based medical device in the country. The newly approved device is the VUNOmed-BoneAge, an image diagnostics device that uses a deep learning engine to read an X-ray scan of a person’s left hand to instantaneously determine his or her bone age, or skeletal age.The device was developed by Vuno, a local medical artificial intelligence technology startup, in partnership with Asan Medi

Technology May 16, 2018

South Korea’s top financial regulator and Samsung BioLogics are set to butt heads Thursday over allegations that the Samsung-owned contract drug manufacturer committed accounting fraud by inflating its net profit ahead of its initial public offering in 2016.The Financial Services Commission will be convening an initial meeting of its in-house accounting oversight panel on Thursday. It will then refer the case to the Securities and Futures Commission for a final decision. The deliberations follow

Industry May 16, 2018

Nexon Korea announced Wednesday plans to release its first R-rated mobile role-playing game “Kaiser” next month. The game will preopen on June 4 and officially launch on June 7, according to the game publisher.“Kaiser” is a hardcore mobile massively multiplayer online role-playing game, or MMORPG, for users aged 18 and above. It was developed by development studio Pathfinder8 under the lead of producer Chae Ki-byung, the chief developer of the hit mobile game “Lineage 2.”Fastfinder8 Producer Cha

Technology May 16, 2018

The Korean Association of Newspapers, South Korea’s flagship newspaper union, on Tuesday demanded the government enact new legislation mandating the country’s internet portal websites, including Naver, adopt an “outlink system” for news articles displayed on their platforms.　　The union urged the government and lawmakers to legally mandate all portal sites adopt the outlink system in order to break down their centralized control over the local online news distribution system.　The demands come in

Technology May 15, 2018

The Internet of Things, abbreviated as IoT, is discussed today as a core technology concept expected to usher in a new era of digital connectivity around the world.The IoT refers to billions of devices connected over the internet constantly collecting and sharing data, be it for an automobile or a household appliance. It’s a revolutionary concept in that objects can communicate with one another, rather than just with a human user, signaling a new level of digital intelligence.While the IoT is an

Technology May 15, 2018

Line Plus, the South Korean subsidiary of Naver-owned Line Corp., on Tuesday announced the launch of Unchain, a joint venture with global integrated blockchain network platform Icon.The company expects Unchain to work in tandem with Unblock, another blockchain technology business unit established by Line Plus last month, to build various decentralized apps running on a blockchain network. Unchain CEO Lee hong-kyu (Line Plus)According to the company, Unchain will work with Icon’s blockchain netwo

Technology May 15, 2018

One of the biggest nightmares for a parent is losing their child in a crowded shopping mall. When a child goes missing, security guards typically go around on foot looking for the child, while mall employees sit with parents to shift through hours of video surveillance footage. Such procedures -- often slow yet time-sensitive -- can now be significantly expedited when using an advanced facial identification artificial intelligence program, claims SK Holdings C&C, the information technology solut

Technology May 14, 2018

South Korea’s top financial regulator will embark on initial steps to review accounting fraud allegations involving contract drug manufacturer Samsung BioLogics this week, the outcome of which will largely sway the company’s future prospects and legal standing.The Financial Services Commission is set to review the closely-watched case on Thursday via an in-house accounting oversight panel, marking the first formal meeting on the issue. It will then refer the case to the Securities and Futures Co

Industry May 13, 2018

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles highlighting South Korea’s promising startups in the emerging sectors of digital health care and next-generation medical devices. This is the 18th installment. -- Ed.As genome sequencing costs have drastically dropped in the past few years, numerous startups have begun offering direct-to-consumer DNA analysis services through which individuals can learn about their genes and related health markers with a saliva sample.Finding out about one’s ge

Technology May 3, 2018

DELIVERIES ON LABOR DAY -- A deliveryman unloads packages from a truck at an apartment complex in Seoul on Tuesday, Korea’s official Labor Day. Under Korean labor laws, deliverymen are categorized as “special employment workers” and therefore are not legally obligated to refrain from working on Labor Day. (Yonhap)DELIVERIES ON LABOR DAY -- A deliveryman unloads packages from a truck at an apartment complex in Seoul on Tuesday, Korea’s official Labor Day. Under Korean labor laws, deliverymen are

Industry May 1, 2018

The South Korean government plans to invest 35.7 billion won ($33.4 million) over the next three years to build a homegrown medical artificial intelligence system that analyzes patients’ medical data to offer personalized diagnostics and treatment plans.　The Ministry of Science and ICT held a ceremony in Seoul on Monday to formally mark the beginning of efforts to develop the Korean medical AI system dubbed “Dr. Answer,” which uses medical big data to guide doctors in their diagnosis and treatme

Technology May 1, 2018

A US court on Friday has partially accepted and partially denied South Korea’s Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s motion to dismiss the claims brought against them by domestic rival Medytox over the origins of the bacterial strain used to produce botulinum toxin products.　 The two Korean drugmakers involved in the case responded Monday with contradicting interpretations of the court decision, continuing a long-running dispute over the source of their anti-wrinkle drugs.The Superior Court of California in

Industry April 30, 2018

China’s Tencent Holdings is considering investing in South Korean game company Bluehole, the parent firm of PUBG, which is behind the world’s current best-selling video game “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds,“ according to industry sources. It could mark Tencent’s biggest investment in a Korean game company as the Chinese firm is seen moving to expand its grip in the lucrative gaming industry.　Local news reports citing sources in the venture capital industry recently said that Tencent is planning t

Technology April 30, 2018

Samsung SDS, the information technology services and logistics solutions arm of South Korea’s Samsung Group, said Monday that its first-quarter operating profit rose 24 percent on-year to 181.8 billion won ($170.4 million), on the back of a strong performance by its cloud and smart factory businesses.　Revenue during the January-March period grew 9.5 percent on-year to 2.36 trillion won while net profit jumped 45.2 percent to 131.6 billion won, the company said in its earnings guidance report. (S

Technology April 30, 2018