As cloud computing grows in stature as the future of corporate IT, firms face the choice between low-cost public clouds and their own private clouds, which can offer more security and control.Increasingly, however, firms are looking to take advantage of both, and US virtualization and cloud computing specialist VMware is looking to help its Korean clients adopt such hybrid clouds. Essentially, cloud computing performs its functions -- storing and accessing data, apps and programs -- on the inter

Technology Nov. 12, 2017

Kakao, the firm behind South Korea’s most widely-used mobile messenger KakaoTalk, will ramp up efforts to build a new business ecosystem built on artificial intelligence, its chief executive said Thursday.　“We view AI as not a passing trend but a foundational part of technology and infrastructure,” Kakao CEO Jimmy Rim said during the firm’s third-quarter earnings call.“The fundamental value of KakaoTalk is communication,” he said. “Through our AI engine Kakao I, people will be able to chat via v

Technology Nov. 10, 2017

Naver, the operator of South Korea’s largest portal website and online search engine, has officially called on Google to openly discuss its practices and activities in the Korean market, raising the stakes in an escalating war of words between the two internet giants.Naver CEO Han Seong-sook on Thursday released a lengthy statement laying out point-by-point the company’s stance on a number of issues it had raised against its rival Google including taxes, employment, traffic costs and search and

Technology Nov. 9, 2017

South Korean drug regulators have approved Samsung Bioepis’ biosimilar drug referencing Roche’s Herceptin, marking the first cancer-fighting biosimilar to be sold by the Songdo-based drugmaker.Samsung Bioepis announced Thursday that the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has granted its marketing approval for Samfenet, its biosimilar referencing Roche’s breast cancer treatment Herceptin (trastuzumab).Samfenet was approved in Korea for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, early-stage b

Industry Nov. 9, 2017

Kolon Life Science has begun selling Invossa, a novel cell-mediated therapy for degenerative arthritis, in South Korea, with the first patient injection taking place Wednesday, the company said.　Invossa is the world’s first gene therapy for treating osteoarthritis of the knee, in which the cartilage that cushions the joints wears away, causing the bones to rub together and induce pain.A single injection of the drug delivers therapeutic relief for up to two years, according to the firm. It was de

Industry Nov. 8, 2017

Intuitive Surgical, the world’s top surgical robot maker best known for its da Vinci surgical robot system, opened a new surgical innovation and training center in South Korea on Tuesday. Located inside the Sangam DMC High-Tech Industry Center in northeastern Seoul, the 3,624-square-meter facility features five training stations equipped with seven da Vinci systems and lecture rooms with audiovisual equipment for hosting live video meetingsIt also provides two open demo rooms where anyone, inclu

Technology Nov. 8, 2017

Celltrion said Tuesday that it will present new data in the US showing that its biosimilar drug Truxima is comparable to Roche’s Rituxan in terms of efficacy, pharmacodynamics and safety, citing the conditions of rheumatoid arthritis patients who have switched to Truxima in place of the reference drug.　The clinical findings will be presented at the 2017 American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting in San Diego, California, on Tuesday, local time.A total of 295 patients participated in the ext

Industry Nov. 7, 2017

Shares of TissueGene, the US-based biopharmaceutical subsidiary of South Korea’s Kolon Group, officially began trading on the Kodaq Monday. They opened at 52,000 won ($47), up 92.6 percent from the initial offering price of 27,000 won.　After trading began, however, the firm’s shares plunged by as much as 19 percent from the opening price, before closing at 42,700 won, down 17.88 percent.Despite the drop, the shares still stood well above their initial offering price of 27,000 won. TissueGene’s m

Industry Nov. 6, 2017

CJ Group is looking to sell off its pharmaceutical unit CJ Healthcare in what market watchers perceive is a strategic move to part with less-profitable businesses and concentrate investment into more promising sectors.CJ CheilJedang, which owns a 100 percent stake in CJ Healthcare, announced Friday that it is “internally reviewing plans to sell its shares in CJ Healthcare, but nothing has been decided in detail yet.”The disclosure came following local news reports that CJ Group was preparing to

Industry Nov. 5, 2017

- 엘러간, ‘가능한 선에서 가장 빠른 시일 내로 이노톡스 3상 시작할 것’- 메디톡스의 제품 생산이 계획대로 진행 된다면 3상 시작 시기는 2018년 중 예측- 엘러간 약 1년만에 처음 공식 입장 제공(코리아헤럴드=손지영 기자) 다국적제약사 엘러간(Allergan)이 메디톡스의 액상형 보톡스 ‘이노톡스’의 임상 3상을 ‘가능한 선에서 가장 빠른 시일 내로 시작할 것’이라는 공식 입장을 밝혔다. 메디톡스의 제품 생산이 계획대로 진행 된다면 3상 시작 시기는 2018년 중이 될 것으로 보인다.그간 ‘이노톡스’ 임상 계획 및 메디톡스와의 협력관계에 대해 침묵했던 엘러간이 약 1년만에 처음 공식 입장을 내놓은 것이다. 엘러간 본사는 “양사는 국내에선 이노톡스로 알려진 MT10109L의 임상 시작을 위해 최대 노력하고 있다’며 “메디톡스가 3상을 위한 임상용 제품을 계획대로 2018년에 제공한다면 엘러간은 임상 3상을 가능한 선에서 가장 빠른 시일 내로 시작할 것” 이라고 코리아헤럴드에 밝

한국어판 Nov. 3, 2017

Allergan said Friday that it would initiate phase 3 clinical trials of Innotox, Medytox’s type A liquid botulinum toxin product, “as soon as is reasonably possible.”The announcement indicates that the trials for the cosmetic treatment, also known as BTX, would likely begin next year if Medytox supplies the testing batch as scheduled.This is the first time in more than a year the US drugmaker has officially spoken up on its development plans for Innotox, and its partnership with Seoul-based Medyt

Industry Nov. 3, 2017

　Google, which has long faced flak for not revealing how much money it makes in South Korea, has struck back at public accusations made by its local rival Naver this week.　In response to politicians’ intense criticism of Naver during a parliamentary audit on Wednesday, the Korean firm’s founder claimed that Google and Facebook made huge profits in Korea without paying any tax or creating jobs.　Google Korea released a statement Thursday saying that it fully abides by local tax regulations and con

Technology Nov. 2, 2017

Nexon unveiled “EA Sports FIFA Online 4,” a new PC online game developed by US video gaming giant Electronic Arts’ South Korea studio, during a media showcase held Thursday in Seoul. The new game seeks to build on the success of “EA Sports FIFA Online 3,” also developed by EA’s Korea studio Spearhead and distributed in Korea by Nexon from 2012. Nexon is the exclusive publisher of EA’s latest FIFA game for the Korean market once again.Built on a next-generation engine, “FIFA Online 4” was develop

Technology Nov. 2, 2017

In the latest face-off between humans and artificial intelligence, a South Korean professional gamer beat his AI opponents 4:0 in the PC strategy game StarCraft during a competition held Tuesday at Sejong University in Seoul.　Though the AI computers managed to beat two amateur players, the bots all lost against professional gamer Song Byung-gu, who is known as one of the best Starcraft players in the world. Three human players -- two student players and Song -- each competed against four AI bots

Technology Nov. 1, 2017

Naver founder Lee Hae-jin was heavily grilled by South Korean lawmakers during parliamentary audit sessions held on Monday and Tuesday that scrutinized the portal website’s news manipulation and uncontested monopoly over the local web advertisement market.The lawmakers also zeroed in on Naver’s core profit-generating services including its search ads and online shopping platform business.Lee, currently Naver’s Global Investment Officer, was summoned to an audit led by the Ministry of Science and

Technology Oct. 31, 2017