Kakao Talk moving to launch internet call services

Competition is heating up between mobile messenger operators in Korea as Kakao Talk, the formidable smartphone application, appears to be developing its internet phone call services. Industry watchers said Sunday the venture firm has been recruiting engineers who have experience in mobile voiceover Internet protocol, technology that enables voice and multimedia communications between users via bro

TechnologyJuly 24, 2011

Prada Korea sends most of earnings to overseas parent

Prada Korea transferred most of its net profits for 2009 to its parent firm, while providing little in the way of social contributions to Korea, placing the company among foreign firms accused of turning a blind eye to social causes.The Korean vendor of the Italian fashion brand is wholly owned by Prada Far East, based in the Netherlands. According to Prada Korea’s regulatory filings, more than 15

IndustryJuly 24, 2011

Tall people more likely to get cancer

Research suggests that tall people are at greater cancer risk as the likelihood of developing the disease rises by 16 percent for every extra 10cm in height in both sexes, the Telegraph reported.Dr. Jane Green and her colleagues, who published the finding in The Lancet Oncology, point to two reasons for such correlation.“One possible reason is fairly obvious -- tall people have more cells so there

TechnologyJuly 24, 2011

Fake Kia ad stripped of Cannes award

Creatives of a Brazilian campaign agency, Moma Propoganda, have been banned from next year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity after they used fake Kia Motors ads to win two awards at the Cannes awards.Intended to promote the Kia Sportage’s dual-zone hot-and-cold climate control feature, the agency creatives illustrated family-friendly images on one side, juxtaposed with adult fant

IndustryJuly 24, 2011

S. Korea's GNI forecast to jump to $30,000 by 2014: finance minister

JEJU ISLAND, South Korea, July 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's gross national income (GNI) is forecast to grow to $30,000 per capita by 2014 before increasing by an additional $10,000 in the four years that follow, the finance minister said on Saturday."Our country's gross national income may exceed $30,000 in the first quarter of 2014 and $40,000 in 2018," Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan said in a for

July 23, 2011

SC First Bank’s striking workers to fly to London for protest

The striking labor union at SC First Bank said that it would fly to Britain on Saturday to visit the bank’s headquarters in London as part of its fight against management in Korea.Speaking at a news conference in Seoul on Friday, the union members said they plan to hold a joint news conference with Britain’s labor organizations and to request a meeting with Standard Chartered PLC CEO Peter Sands.T

July 22, 2011

‘Carmakers to see reduced surplus from revised FTA’

The modified Korea-U.S. free trade agreement will bring in less surplus for domestic carmakers than had initially been forecast, a government report said Friday. The FTA, signed in 2007 and modified in November is expected to expand local carmakers’ trade surplus by $488 million annually, $53 million less than the equivalent figure under the earlier terms agreed. The two nations agreed to scale ba

IndustryJuly 22, 2011

Big companies hire more ex-officials as directors

Affiliates of South Korea’s top 30 conglomerates employed more former government officials as outside directors this year, data showed Friday, amid escalating criticism of the practice.A total of 308 former government officials were working as outside directors at the 1,140 affiliates of the leading conglomerates as of end-June, up from 256 a year earlier, according to the data compiled by local r

July 22, 2011

Going into hospital far riskier than flying: WHO

 

TechnologyJuly 22, 2011

Red meat market widens for Australia, U.S., Canada

Red meat market widens for Australia, U.S., CanadaBy Cynthia J. KimImported red meat from Australia, the United States and Europe is enjoying a fast-increasing market share in Korea, benefiting from the huge loss of livestock here after the worst-ever foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the past year.And competition in the imported beef market is set to become fiercer as Canada will soon resume its

IndustryJuly 21, 2011

Power bloggers face tax probe

NTS faces legal roadblock to getting portals to offer info about bloggersThe National Tax Service said Thursday it has requested that the country’s major Internet portals provide the personal information of some 1,300 power bloggers on concerns they might be evading taxes. “Early this week, we have asked five to six blog operators including Naver, Daum and SK Communications to offer information ab

TechnologyJuly 21, 2011

SKT sets up new social enterprise in Seoul

SK Telecom said Thursday it established a social enterprise called Happy ICT Foundation in southwestern Seoul, together with another social enterprise affiliated with the group.The new social enterprise will support the information technology infrastructure of other social enterprises that require assistance. Affordable IT service solutions and consulting services will be provided and shared with

IndustryJuly 21, 2011

LG Display fails to swing into black in Q2

LG Display failed to swing into the black in the second quarter of this year due to sluggish market conditions but narrowed its operating deficit to 48.3 billion won ($45.6 million) from 23.9 billion won in the previous quarter.Quarterly net profit reached 21.3 billion won, up from the 115.4 billion won deficit it recorded in the first quarter, the Seoul-based display-maker said on Thursday. “We f

IndustryJuly 21, 2011

Hynix’s sales edge down, but profit rises from Q1

Hynix Semiconductor, the world’s second-largest computer memory chip maker, announced Thursday it posted 2.76 trillion won in sales and 447 billion won in operating profit for the second quarter.The figures are down from the same period last year, 16 percent in sales and 56 percent in operating profit. Net income reached 473 billion won ($449 million).“The second quarter started off with demand gr

IndustryJuly 21, 2011