South Korea’s tech industry is forecast to report a better performance in the third quarter than the second, owing to pent-up demand amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, according to financial sources on Sunday. Industry bellwether Samsung Electronics is expected to post over 10 trillion won ($8.58 billion) in operating profit in the July to September period, which would be up about 32 percent from the company’s Q3 operating profit last year. “Samsung’s mobile busines

LG Uplus Corp., a major South Korean mobile carrier, said Sunday it is joining forces with Google to jointly develop 5G mobile edge computing (MEC) technology. Under the partnership, LG Uplus will work with Google Cloud, which will provide its artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies, to develop new services that utilize MEC on the telecom operator's 5G network. MEC is a key technology in delivering ultra-low latency data communication in 5G networks, and it is expected to b

Samsung Electronics announced Friday that the company has officially launched the Galaxy Z Fold 2 in overseas markets. The company’s new foldable smartphone will be available in around 40 nations, including the US, Singapore, Thailand, England and France. The official launch date in the South Korean market has been delayed to Sept. 23 due to a large number of preorders, which currently stands at 80,000, the company said. Samsung Electronics said it plans to launch the new booklike fol

  South Korean tech firms are joining the race for the growing remote work market, industry officials said Friday, as businesses brace for a drawn-out fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The country's workplaces have been reshaped this year as many companies opt to keep their workers out of offices to avoid infection risks. A July survey by the Korea Economic Research Institute found that 75 percent of the country's largest companies have introduced flexible working systems, reflecting

LG Uplus Corp., a major South Korean mobile carrier, said Friday it plans to roll out its 5G-powered autonomous robot next year.The robot -- which is being developed in partnership with autonomous mobility firm Unmanned Solution -- has recently demonstrated its abilities at local refiner Hyundai Oilbank Co.'s facility in Seosan, 150 kilometers south of Seoul, LG Uplus said. The robot was able to roam around the compound on its own with a margin of error of 10 centimeters and carry out safety p

Before getting my hands on the LG Wing, I had no idea why we would need a screen that spins around. But once I got to swivel the main screen -- with the transition so incredibly suave thanks to the built-in hydraulic damper -- it was, indeed, a whole new experience. With the 6.8-inch P-OLED Full Vision display swiveled 90 degrees to set it horizontally, the LG phone offered the best conditions that vertical square-shape smartphones can offer for watching movies and taking photos or v

Philips stresses importance of ‘health continuum,’ empowering people to stay on top of health

KT Corp., a major South Korean mobile carrier, said Thursday it has signed an agreement with Kakao Corp.'s telecom unit Stage Five to develop an artificial intelligence-powered companion robot targeting children and the elderly. Under the agreement, also signed by Taiwan-based Nuwa Robotics Corp. and the nongovernmental organization Ashoka Korea, the companies aim to release the companion robot in the first half of next year. KT said the robot will feature basic movement, such as nodding its

Kakao, operator of South Korea’s top mobile messaging platform, announced Wednesday that the company has launched a new enterprise messenger. The new corporate messenger developed by Kakao’s artificial intelligence unit Kakao Enterprise has combined existing user interface of popular messenger app Kakao Talk with AI and cloud technologies to support digital transformation of work environment and to improve work efficiency, according to the company. Kakao Enterprise has made the b

US officials expressed concerns over South Korea’s revised Telecommunications Business Act, which would require foreign platform operators to share the cost of ensuring stable services, business community representatives and government officials said Wednesday. According to the sources, the concerns that the rules unfairly targeted foreign platofrms were raised don Sept. 10 during a videoconference on information and communication technology policy attended by officials from both n

KT Corp., a major South Korean telecom operator, said Wednesday it will build 5G test facilities nationwide as part of the government's initiative to support companies developing new services on the high speed network. The 28.5 billion-won ($24.2 million) project is expected to be completed by 2023 and targets to provide small and medium-sized firms access to research versions of the 5G network to test nascent services, such as connected vehicles, drones and smart factories. The testing sites

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's top mobile carrier, said Wednesday it launched a cloud gaming service in partnership with Microsoft Corp., joining other telecom operators to compete for the growing local cloud gaming market. The mobile carrier's 5GX Cloud Game service is powered by Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, allowing gamers to stream and play the US tech titan's Xbox console titles on Android smartphones and tablets. Microsoft officially released its cloud gaming service simultaneousl

Korea’s semiconductor exports by country

CALIFORNIA (AP) -- Apple introduced a cheaper version of its smartwatch, its latest attempt to broaden the appeal of its trend-setting products while many consumers are forced to scrimp during the coronavirus pandemic. The scaled-down Apple Watch follows on the heels of a budget iPhone the company released five months ago as the economy cratered and unemployment rates rose above the levels reached during the Great Recession more than a decade ago. Apple also took the wraps off a new high-end

South Korea‘s exports of information and communication technology products continued to increase for the third consecutive month in August, according to a government report released Tuesday. The Ministry of Science and ICT report shows the nation‘s exports of ICT products last month reaching $15.24 billion, up by 0.3 percent on-year. The upward trend has been largely contributed to robust exports of memory chips and computers amid the coronavirus pandemic. Outbound shipments of s