South Korea has been seeking to outperform global competitors with many futuristic innovations, but cryptocurrency is not one of them. Alarmed by the massive price fluctuations of bitcoins, the Korean government has taken a cautious approach toward cryptocurrencies. Their trading has yet to show full signs of recovery since the government banned initial coin offerings in 2017. The measure had sparked intense debate over how to treat blockchain technology that underlies cryptocurrencies. While th

Technology May 7, 2019

The South Korean government announced Tuesday it had decided to participate in US-led multinational efforts to return astronauts to the moon by 2024 by co-developing devices used for the lunar landing.According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, The Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute signed a memorandum of understanding with NASA for cooperation on various space programs and exploration platforms.While the unmanned lunar lander will be developed solely by NASA and American companies, t

Industry May 7, 2019

　Naver said Monday three of its web comics had been nominated in the Eisner Awards’ best web comics category, amid the South Korean internet giant’s foray into overseas markets. 　According to Naver Webtoon, its web comics “Lavender Jack” by Dan Schkade, “Let’s Play” by Mongie and “Lore Olympus” by Rachel Smythe have been nominated for the Best Webcomic for 2019 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award.  Naver`s web-based cartoon, "Let`s Play." Naver Webtoon　Other nominees in the category include “The Co

Business May 6, 2019

US investment bank JP Morgan has estimated that the price of chips for 5G-powered smartphones would be twice as much as those for 4G-based handsets, a Seoul-based research institute said Monday. According to the Institute for Information and Communication Technology Promotion, JP Morgan said in its 2018 report that the average price of various chips powering 5G handsets would be about 1.85 higher than for smartphones using the 4G Long-Term Evolution network.Titled “5g Smartphone: The Next Big Th

Technology April 29, 2019

　Samsung’s first 5G-powered smartphone is expected to carry a higher price tag in the United States than in South Korea. 　US mobile carrier Verizon said Thursday that it had begun preorders for the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, which will hit Verizon stores May 16. The 256 GB option costs $1,300 and the 512 GB option is $1,400. 　But in Korea, where the model became available April 5 after the rollout of 5G commercial services here, the 256 GB model costs about 1.39 million won ($1,205), with the 512 GB

Technology April 26, 2019

 　LG Electronics confirmed Thursday that it would stop producing smartphones in South Korea and move manufacturing plants to Vietnam in an effort to improve profitability amid a slump in global smartphone demand. 　The smartphone maker has decided to transfer its phone manufacturing plants in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, to Haipong in Vietnam. Those working at its Pyeongtaek factories will be posted to Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. 　With the transfer expected to be completed by the end o

Industry April 25, 2019

　South Korean internet giant Naver announced Thursday its operating profit fell nearly 20 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, as the company has witnessed worsened profitability following aggressive investment in new business overseas. 　In its quarterly earnings report, Naver said its operating profit reached 206.2 billion won ($177 million) in the January-March period. During the same period last year, operating profit was 257 billion won. 　The tech company’s reduced operating pro

Technology April 25, 2019

　Global streaming service Netflix said Wednesday it has concluded its trial of mobile-only subscription plans for South Koreans users, signaling it will not roll out the pricing scheme that is cheaper than current membership plans.　“The tests have concluded,” Netflix said in a statement sent to the The Korea Herald. “These tests we conduct may not get rolled out as member plans. Netflix will continue its efforts to provide the best entertainment experience for its members.”　Netflix said last wee

Technology April 24, 2019

 　The South Korean government said Wednesday it will expand coverage of the fifth-generation wireless network, with a goal of providing the service to more than 90 percent of the population by the end of this year. 　A day after the meeting with mobile carriers Tuesday, the Ministry of Science and ICT said the carriers had pledged to build a total of 230,000 5G base stations in 85 cities, covering 93 percent of Korea’s total population of around 51 million. 　According to the ministry, 50,512 5G s

Technology April 24, 2019

South Korean tech giant Naver said Tuesday its translation service has become more popular than that of Google among South Korean users, with the number of people using Naver’s Papago app surpassing the Google Translate app by up to a million. According to data from local market research firm App Annie, the number of monthly active users for Papago reached about 5.65 million in March, while 4.73 million people used Google Translate in Korea. According to Naver’s statistics, also released by the

Technology April 23, 2019

With the global streaming service Netflix gaining popularity among South Koreans by offering original content, the country’s major telecom firm KT has revamped its pay TV services to prevent subscribers from cutting the cord. During a press conference Tuesday, KT said its Internet Protocol TV service, Olleh TV, had updated its list of films not released in Korean theaters. The premium content is available for 10,000 won ($8.77) per movie through a service called Olleh TV Choice.  (Yonhap)While d

Technology April 23, 2019

 　Huawei has criticized US President Donald Trump for being “narrow-minded” toward China’s growth in fifth-generation network technology, dismissing US security concerns over Chinese company’s equipment as “ungrounded.” 　　In an interview with Korean reporters last week, Huawei’s rotating Chairman Guo Ping said given the company’s global presence in the world telecommunications market, it would be “suicidal” for the company to implement backdoors in its equipment for espionage purposes. 　Referrin

Technology April 22, 2019

 　With complaints increasing among local users as to the quality of the fifth-generation cellular network, the country’s mobile carriers have admitted their services failed to meet consumer expectations, pledging improved operations.　SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus have each publicly acknowledged their 5G networks had issues in delivery as some subscribers have been complaining their services are not as speedy and secure as advertised.　Faced with criticism ranging from low speeds to poor connectivit

Technology April 21, 2019

　CHUNCHEON, Gangwon Province -- South Korean internet giant Naver on Thursday criticized local conglomerates for relying too much on foreign cloud-computing services, urging the government to help preserve “data sovereignty” in the finance and public sectors. 　During a meeting with reporters at its data center in Chuncheon, Gwangwon Province, Naver Business Platform CEO Park Won-ki said Samsung Electronics and other big companies have become overly dependent on global cloud-computing providers l

Technology April 18, 2019

 　Amazon Web Services on Wednesday pledged to enhance cooperation with its South Korean partners with a focus on the finance industry. 　With the South Korean government easing regulations on cloud computing businesses in the financial sector this year, AWS said at its annual meeting in Seoul that it is seeking to lead the charge by expanding into the new market. 　Financial institutions here had been banned from storing clients’ personal data on cloud service platforms. The restriction was lifted

Technology April 17, 2019