SK Telecom said Sunday that it will tap into the wireless digital tachograph service market by rolling out black boxes for cars in collaboration with small and mid-sized firms.

The country’s top mobile carrier said that it formed a consortium with device makers Dongsun Electronics and Choyoung Automotive as well as system operator UB First and its affiliate SK Marketing and Company to build the car accident data recording system, also known as the black box.

Called the “smart digital” black box, it includes various location-based services and telemetric solutions, such as electronic maps, traffic information, real-time location data and a navigation system, according to company officials.

The launching of the device comes after all drivers were mandated to equip their vehicles with the black box by a related law revised in 2010.

All new vehicles manufactured from that January onward are equipped with the device and all vehicles such as buses and taxis must equip their vehicles with it by the end of next year.

The device will record information like the vehicle’s speed, car engine’s revolutions per minute, location data and the total drive time, its officials said.

SKT’s wireless black box will be offered at about 400,000-500,000 won ($348-$436) and the basic service use rate will be around 10,000-15,000 won, said SK officials.

By Cho Ji-hyun (sharon@heraldcorp.com)