Tech titans to flock to Las Vegas

Tech heavyweights in Korea and around the world will participate in the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas when the biggest annual event for the tech sector opens next week.

Chief executives of Korea`s leading tech firms such as Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics plan to fly to Las Vegas to attend the world`s largest consumer technology tradeshow, which will run from Jan. 7-10, company officials said yesterday.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, Sony CEO Howard Stringer and a number of CEOs from major global companies will also be present at the event.

Samsung Electronics CEO Choi Gee-sung plans to visit the CES, accompanied by chief operating officer Samsung Group heir apparent Lee Jae-yong.



Choi and Lee would be making their first public appearance since a management shake-up this month. Lee has kept a low profile for more than a year and a half since he quit as chief customer officer amid a corruption scandal involving his father and former Samsung Group chairman Lee Kun-hee, as well as the group`s executives. The junior Lee did not attend the CES early this year.

"(Lee Jae-yong) plans to meet customers at the CES," Rhee In-yong, executive vice president and spokesperson for Samsung Group, said last week.

Nam Yong, chief executive of LG Electronics, will also visit the CES. He did not attend the show early this year. Nam was recently retained as chief executive of the world`s No. 2 TV maker and No. 3 handset maker.

Other prominent Korean CEOs participating in the CES will include Kwon Young-soo of LG Display, the world`s No. 2 panel maker after Samsung Electronics, and Kim Jong-kap, CEO of Hynix Semiconductors, the second-biggest memory chip maker after Samsung.



Unveiling e-book, hybrid cameras



Headed by Samsung and LG, Korean companies plan to unveil new products and technologies in this year`s CES.

Samsung, the world`s top TV maker, plans to introduce a wide range of flat-screen TVs, including LED LCD TVs and 3D TVs, a company spokesperson said yesterday.

Samsung, the world`s top maker of LED LCD TVs, is said to unveil LED LCD TVs, which features 3D functions. The spokesperson declined to comment, only saying that LED LCD TVs and 3D TVs are expected to be the biggest buzzwords in the TV market next year.

Samsung also plans to showcase an array of new electronics products, including new e-book reader and "hybrid" camera, the spokesperson said, without giving details.

Samsung, which is a latecomer in the e-book market, earlier announced an ambitious goal of overtaking Amazon as the top seller of e-book readers with the launch of its new digital book scheduled for early next year.

Samsung`s "hybrid camera" whose launch had been delayed is also expected to debut at the show. Samsung aims to become a top-tier brand in digital cameras by 2012.

LG, the No. 2 TV maker, also plans to showcase a full line-up of its 3D TVs, joining Sony and Panasonic that has been focusing on 3D TV business.

The CES, which is held in Las Vegas early each January, is one of the most crucial events in the tech sector, offering a glimpse of technology trends and products for the year.

Last year, fewer companies participated in the show due to the global recession. The CES organizers expect to attract more visitors this year amid signs of recovery in the tech industry and the global economy.

More than 2,500 exhibitors will showcase their latest consumer electronics products at the 2010 International CES, which is expected to attract more than 22,000 visitors from 140 countries. Big-name executives who plan to make keynote speeches include Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo and Intel CEO Paul Otellini.

(hjjin@heraldm.com)







By Jin Hyun-joo