Taking a step further into the non-memory market, officials from South Korea’s industry-leading companies gathered on Wednesday to discuss their approaches to the government-led initiative to boost the system-on-chip industry.Hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the seminar was held to promote cooperation among semiconductor manufacturers, fabless firms and customers from different industries on development of new SoC products and solutions as a follow-up measure of the na

Technology Dec. 11, 2019

LG Electronics said Tuesday it has kicked off sales of 8K organic light-emitting diode TVs in Japan, a market that is receptive to OLED TVs, ahead of the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.The South Korean TV maker has displayed the LG Signature OLED 8K model at flagship retailers across Japan. Due to the preference for OLED TVs in Japan, OLED TVs accounted for 20 percent of the country’s TV sales this year, far larger than OLED TVs’ global market share at 6 percent.  Amid the growing inte

Technology Dec. 10, 2019

SK Telecom announced Tuesday the mobile carrier has established an autonomous sailing platform for vessels based on its 5G network in collaboration with Samsung Heavy Industries, expanding the concept of autonomous operation to ships. The telecom company worked with Samsung’s shipbuilding unit at its shipyard in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province. Using the SKT 5G network established at the shipyard, the mobile carrier tested its autonomous and remote control platform connected to 3.3-meter-

Technology Dec. 10, 2019

Samsung Electronics announced Monday that the company had supplied super-large smart LED signage and interactive touchscreens for MSC Cruises’ flagship Grandiosa, based in Geneva, Switzerland. A 93-meter-long curved LED display is installed on the ceiling of the global cruise liner’s indoor promenade, its central social hub, providing visual arts at all times at a resolution of 1,700 nits. The display also showcases visual performances three times a day.The Grandiosa is the world&rsq

Technology Dec. 9, 2019

SK Telecom and Statistics Korea said Monday they have started the pilot service of a foot traffic map using the telecom company’s mobile big data technology. The map measures foot traffic across the country by using big data collected from SKT’s mobile network stations. It shows the inflow and outflow of people in a particular area, and data can be rearranged according to weekdays, weekends or months. The mobile big data technology is expected to help save costs and labor needed for

Technology Dec. 9, 2019

The Friday announcement for a joint venture between South Korean battery maker LG Chem and US carmaker General Motors has upped the ante in the global competition to secure lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, according to industry sources on Sunday. The 2.7 trillion won ($2.3 billion) joint venture for an EV battery factory with production capacity of over 30 gigawatt hours per year in Lordstown, Ohio, was clinched amid GM’s ongoing transition from combustion engine cars to electr

Technology Dec. 8, 2019

 Samsung Electronics took a 71 percent share in the South Korean smartphone market in the third quarter, outstripping its rivals Apple and LG Electronics, a report showed Thursday. According to market tracker Counterpoint Research, the tech giant’s market share grew 67 percent on-year. Its crosstown rival LG Electronics saw its share unchanged at 17 percent, the data showed, although the company has witnessed a steady growth in the sales of its latest V50 ThinQ 5G model. Samsung&rsquo

Technology Dec. 5, 2019

South Korea’s third-biggest conglomerate SK Group announced Thursday that it has tapped four new CEOs with the goal of maintaining its “Deep Change” initiative amid persisting difficulties in the global business environment. The four newly promoted CEOs -- Park Sung-ha of SK Holdings C&C, Lee Young-wook of SK Materials and head of Investment Center 2, Choi Jin-hwan of SK Broadband and Cha Gyu-tak of SK Lubricants -- will join the Supex Council, the de facto control body of

Industry Dec. 5, 2019

De facto Samsung Electronics leader Lee Jae-yong is expected to meet with the owner of largest Swedish business group Wallenberg later this month, according to news reports Wednesday. Lee will reportedly hold a meeting with Chairman Marcus Wallenberg, who is scheduled to come to Seoul on Dec. 18 as part of a business delegation accompanying the Swedish prime minister’s visit to the country. A business summit that promotes Korean businesses’ investments in Sweden will be held at a hot

Technology Dec. 4, 2019

Samsung Electronics appears to be working on hiding the hinge component in the second edition of Galaxy Fold that is expected to be launched next August, according to industry sources Wednesday. The South Korean tech giant has trademarked a patent for something called “Hideaway Hinge” with the European Union Intellectual Property Office, according to online outlet LetsGo Digital based in the Netherlands. The trademark application was filed Monday. The description suggests the new des

Technology Dec. 4, 2019

LG Electronics seems to be taking the spat with Samsung Electronics over picture quality of 8K TVs to the global level by mobilizing its overseas offices, according to industry sources Tuesday. The company’s US branch recently uploaded a video commercial on its YouTube channel that once again explains why organic light-emitting diode TV technology is superior to its crosstown rival’s quantum dot light-emitting diode TVs. The same version was aired in South Korea in September. The adv

Technology Dec. 3, 2019

New variants of foldable smartphones are expected to hit the market next year, expanding the foldable segment upon rising demand for larger screens, according to industry sources Monday. At least two new foldable models are likely to be launched by Samsung Electronics next year, while there are rumors that LG Electronics could debut its first foldable phone. One of the new Samsung foldable phones will be a clamshell-type device that folds vertically, while the other is likely to be an upgraded v

Technology Dec. 2, 2019

Is Vietnam a good place for chipmakers to consider building a high-tech plant? In light of a request by the Vietnamese head of state to Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest chipmaker, many in South Korea are asking whether it is a viable business move.In a private meeting held in Seoul on Thursday, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc asked Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong to consider building a chip manufacturing facility there. The Korean tech giant already has pr

Technology Dec. 1, 2019

With LG Electronics welcoming a new chief executive officer, the Korean tech giant is likely to get tough on an ongoing dispute over 8K TVs with its archrival Samsung Electronics, according to industry officials Friday.Kwon Bong-seok, who replaces Jo Seong-jin, the vice chairman of LG Electronics, is the one who made a public denouncement of Samsung’s quantum dot light-emitting diode TV that it is only a sort of LCD TV at a press conference in March. Kwon taking the leadership of LG Electr

Technology Nov. 29, 2019

LG Group, the fourth-largest family-run conglomerate in South Korea, said Thursday it has changed the group’s top brass and tapped young leaders in their 30s as new executives at affiliates in a bid to respond more swiftly to market changes, in its annual organizational reshuffling. Jo Seong-jin, vice chairman and CEO of LG Electronics, stepped down from the top position of one of Korea’s main tech firms as the group intends to choose change over stability. LG Electronics is the flag

Technology Nov. 28, 2019