The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Monday its committee on the protection of industrial technologies failed to reach an agreement on whether to give Samsung Electronics’ chipmaking technologies protection as national core assets amid an ongoing dispute over the firm’s workplace safety. The 13-member committee of experts on semiconductors and security discussed whether or not reports on the working conditions of Samsung’s chip plants in Gyeonggi Province contained information deemed

Industry April 16, 2018

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Monday will have a deliberation committee to decide on whether to give Samsung Electronics’ chipmaking technologies protection as national core technologies amid a dispute over workplace safety.Earlier this month, the Ministry of Employment and Labor moved for the disclosure of reports on working conditions of the company’s semiconductor plants, which Samsung said could lead to the loss of industrial secrets. Ahead of the scheduled committee, Industr

Industry April 13, 2018

LG Electronics said Friday it will exhibit a smart home filled with the company’s Signature premium appliances harmonizing with Italy’s luxury furniture by Natuzzi during Milano Design Week on Tuesday.At Natuzzi’s exhibition booth, LG will decorate a living room with its Signature organic light-emitting diode TV, air purifier, ThinQ speaker and smart lights surrounding the brand’s famous Colosseo sofa, and showcase how visitors can operate the appliances by issuing verbal commands while they sit

Technology April 13, 2018

South Korean tech titan Samsung Electronics is increasing its patent holdings outside Korea, in the United States particularly, in a bid to prepare for intensifying intellectual property rights disputes, according to the industry on Friday. Samsung held a total of 119,337 patents across the globe as of the end of 2017, according to industry data. The number of Samsung’s patents with the US stood at 46,150, while the Korean company had 24,860 patents in its home country and 10,509 in Europe. The

Technology April 13, 2018

South Korean smartphone giant Samsung Electronics has been sued by US-based data security company PACid Technologies for infringing the American firm’s patents on biometric solutions, according to a US legal resources website and news reports on Thursday. On Justia, a US legal resources website, brief information of the case filed on Friday by PACid Technologies with the Texas Eastern District Court was posted, revealing that the Korean tech titan is involved in another major patent infringement

Technology April 12, 2018

South Korean mobile carriers on Thursday expressed concerns about the country’s top court’s ruling to reveal the breakdown of their operating costs to the general public. The Supreme Court of Korea earlier Thursday upheld the ruling made by a local high court, which claimed consumers’ access to information regarding operating costs of the telecom companies is a right granted by the Constitution for a clearer understanding of fees being charged. In other words, the court’s judgment could be inter

Industry April 12, 2018

Samsung Electronics on Wednesday opened a cooking studio filled with its built-in appliances in partnership with local food company Sempio, announcing its expansion strategy for the 1 trillion won ($937 million) built-in market. A range of Samsung’s premium kitchen appliances from its Internet of Things-based Family Hub refrigerator, bottom-mounted freezer-type fridge, induction cooktop and WaterWall dishwasher to its built-in oven are set up in the cooking studio, dubbed “Sempio Korean Taste Sp

Technology April 11, 2018

South Korea’s leading lithium-ion battery maker LG Chem said Wednesday it would invest a total of 239.4 billion won ($224 million) to set up joint ventures with China’s Huayou Cobalt by 2020 in order to secure a stable supply of core materials for batteries. Zhejiang province-based Huayou Cobalt is the world’s biggest cobalt producer. It produced 20,000 tons of cobalt in 2017 alone.The two will establish two joint ventures -- one for precursors and the other for cathodes. Precursors made of coba

Technology April 11, 2018

LG Electronics said Tuesday it will unveil the seventh edition of its flagship G series smartphone in New York on May 2. “G7 ThinQ,” the upcoming LG phone will feature enhanced artificial intelligence functions and improved connectivity with other internet of things devices, according to the company. The newest phone will be showcased at Metropolitan West in Manhattan on May 2. It will then be unveiled in Yongsan IPark Mall in Seoul the following day. ThinQ is LG’s artificial intelligence platfo

Technology April 10, 2018

SK Telecom has begun dispersing information on refunds for subscribers who experienced network outage problems Friday, but some have demanded higher compensation, according to industry sources Monday.The telecom operator announced Sunday it would provide refunds ranging from 600 won to 7,300 won (60 cents to $6.90), depending on individual subscribers’ mobile plans, for the network problems that occurred roughly between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. Friday.According to SKT, the operator planned to send text

Industry April 9, 2018

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is expected to return to the management of the world’s top provider of chips, smartphones and electronics this week, after coming back from a 16-day overseas business trip and after being released from jail in February. According to the industry on Sunday, the Samsung heir seems to be making a comeback for putting Samsung back on track for new growth after about a year0long absence due to his involvement in the former president’s bribery scandal. Le

Industry April 8, 2018

SK Telecom on Saturday announced a plan to compensate subscribers who experienced problems in sending messages and making voice calls Friday. About 7.3 million SKT subscribers are estimated to have experienced some amount of inconvenience for about three hours Friday afternoon due to erroneous operations of Long Term Evolution systems for voice calls and text messages. The problems first occurred at 3:17 p.m. and were solved by 5:48 p.m. According to the terms of agreement, compensation is to be

Technology April 8, 2018

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong returned to Seoul from a 16-day business trip to Europe and North America early Saturday morning, as the industry remained abuzz over when the recently-released heir would officially return to work.At around 6 a.m. Lee was spotted arriving through Incheon International Airport’s Terminal 2, after the trip known to have been aimed at restoring relations with business partners and catching up on latest tech trends.Lee didn't make any answers to questi

Industry April 7, 2018

Samsung Electronics has filed an administrative lawsuit against the Ministry of Employment and Labor to stop it from disclosing reports of working conditions at Samsung’s major semiconductor fabrication complexes in Giheung, Hwaseong and Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province, according to the company on Thursday. The world’s largest memory chip provider said it filed the suit with Suwon District Court on Monday and claimed an administrative appeal with the Central Administrative Appeals Commission to

Technology April 5, 2018

Kim Yoon, head of the newly created AI Research Center at SK Telecom, vowed to develop human-centered artificial intelligence technologies and create new insights and knowledge that cannot be produced by humans at a press conference Wednesday. “A key approach to develop such human-centered AI will be creating a human-focused user interface so that people can use the AI platform intuitively with no need for additional explanations,” Kim said. Kim was a former developer of Apple’s voice assistant

Technology April 4, 2018