SK hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip provider, said Monday it has started mass-production of the fourth-generation 8-gigabit low power double data rate 4 chips for mobile devices based on the 10-nanometer process using the extreme ultraviolet technology. The announcement puts SK hynix ahead of its bigger rival Samsung Electronics in the race to develop next-generation DRAM chips. And SK hynix has now become the world’s first firm to commercialize “1anm D

Technology July 12, 2021

South Korea has been known as a tough market to crack for global compact car brands. But that’s not the case for BMW Group’s Mini. Since its debut in Korea in 2005, the premium compact car brand under BMW has posted steady growth rates each year. In 2019, sales volume hit 10,000 units -- a major milestone for foreign car brands here. Last year, the figure grew more than 10 percent from the previous year. Its latest lineup -- the New Mini Family -- consists of three models, the

Mobility July 12, 2021

Behind the surprise bid of Jungheung for the control of a much-larger rival, Daewoo Engineering & Construction, is a self-made entrepreneur little known outside the construction field: Jung Chang-sun, the chairman and founder of Jungheung Group. Jungheung, founded in the southern city of Gwangju, grabbed headlines on Tuesday after it was selected as the preferred bidder of Daewoo E&C, the nation’s sixth-largest builder with a proud but checkered history. Local media put Jungheung

Industry July 6, 2021

Samsung Electronics will unveil a lineup of new mobile devices, including foldable phones, next month, according to industry sources on Monday. Industry watchers say that Samsung will be holding a Galaxy Unpacked event at 11 p.m. on Aug. 11, Korea time, which will be livestreamed from Seoul. Samsung, however, hasn’t yet sent out an official invitation to its partners and media worldwide. Regarding the schedule, Samsung said it is not yet fixed. The upcoming show will be the first th

Technology July 5, 2021

A hefty fine given to four Samsung companies, including Samsung Electronics, by the Fair Trade Commission late last month has dealt another blow to South Korea’s top conglomerate in terms of compliance. On Friday Kim Ki-nam, chief of Samsung’s semiconductor business, currently the most powerful person at the company while de facto owner Lee Jae-yong is in jail, urged executives and employees to continue making “ceaseless efforts to maintain compliance rules” in a letter

Industry July 5, 2021

LG Corp., the holding company of Korea’s fourth-biggest conglomerate, on Friday inked a 100 billion-won ($88 million) investment deal with Kakao Mobility as part of efforts to discover new opportunities in future mobility. Both sides did not reveal how much stake LG would acquire in the digital transportation service app operator with the latest deal. LG said the investment was made as part of considerations to develop potential synergy between the conglomerate’s affiliates and

Technology July 2, 2021

South Korea’s business community expressed concerns Friday about a global move toward additional taxes on technology companies that would affect Korean tech giants such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. The Federation of Korean Industries, an organization that represents the interests of Korean businesses, said in a statement, “We express concerns about the side effects of an agreement on the digital tax announced by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Technology July 2, 2021

The chief of LG U+, the smallest of the three major mobile carriers in South Korea, on Wednesday expressed confidence that Disney would choose it as the local partner for its Disney+ streaming service launch, slated for September. “Disney puts its top priority on customer convenience and requires very high standards in terms of quality of content service,” said CEO Hwang Hyeon-sik, during his first press conference since taking office seven months ago. His remarks were embargoed un

Technology July 1, 2021

Samsung Electro-Mechanics said Tuesday the company has developed a multi-layer ceramic capacitor with the largest storage capacity for 5G smartphones. Known as MLCC, the component enables stable supply and control of electric charge within electronic devices. It is as thin as human hair. At least 1,000 capacitors are needed for today’s smartphones per unit. The Samsung unit said the latest MLCC is 1.0 millimeter by 0.5 millimeter and is capable of storing 27 microfarads of electric c

Technology June 29, 2021

South Korea will offer additional frequency bands for further 5G deployment and non-telecom companies are eligible to join the bid, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced Tuesday. 　 The wireless spectrums to be provided are a 600 megahertz block of a 28 Gigahertz frequency band and another 100MHz block of 4.7GHz. According to the ministry plan, the government will divide the 28GHz band into 12 blocks, and the 4.7GHz band into 10 blocks for the frequency rollout and companies or institution

Technology June 29, 2021

A Seoul court’s decision last week that effectively confirmed Netflix‘s obligation to pay network usage fees to mobile carriers suggests that the global video streaming giant might have to change its business strategy in South Korea, according to industry sources Monday. The US-based content provider that raised 415.5 billion won ($367.6 million) in revenue in Korea alone last year has not been paying network fees to provider SK Broadband, the internet protocol TV subsidiary of SK

Technology June 28, 2021

To those who have difficulty in grasping the characteristics of the younger generations of millennials and Gen Z -- pay attention to the “metaverse.” A combination of “meta” and “universe,” the term refers to a virtual world shared by people from the real world. Built on the convergence of all things sci-fi such as augmented reality, virtual reality, extended reality, artificial intelligence, fifth-generation networks, edge computing and so on, this digita

Technology June 26, 2021

Choi In-hyuk, chief operating officer of Naver, the country’s largest portal operator, on Friday announced that he will step down from his post, apologizing for an employee’s suicide. Choi is one of co-founders of Naver, which was established in 1999. He is a close ally of Lee Hae-jin, the de facto chief of the internet company. The executive, however, will maintain his CEO post at Naver Financial. Naver released a statement regarding the employee’s death after an interna

Technology June 25, 2021

Samsung Electronics and its affiliates will start vaccinating its workers at their in-house clinics starting next month, according to industry sources on Friday. The flagship electronics unit and affiliates, including Samsung Display, Samsung SDI and Samsung Electro-Mechanics, will run an in-house vaccination program as part of efforts to beef up antivirus measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Samsung Electronics notified its employees on Friday the company will start the vaccination progra

Technology June 25, 2021

KH Gangwon Development, a special purpose company of KH Group, will acquire the Alpensia Resort in PyeongChang, which was used as a venue for the 2018 Winter Olympics, the company announced Friday. The company signed an agreement with Gangwong Province on Thursday to purchase the resort, some 180 kilometers east of Seoul, for 710 billion won ($629.65 million). The deal is expected to be finalized by Aug. 23, after due diligence. The Alpensia Resort served as the main location of the firs

Industry June 25, 2021