The number of 5G network users who returned to 4G network services has surpassed half a million, according to data released by a local lawmaker, Wednesday. The figure -- 562,656 users who downgraded from their 5G subscriptions -- accounts for 6.5 percent of the total 5G network subscribers in South Korea, according to the report by Rep. Hong Jung-min, who belongs to the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee at the National Assembly. The number of 5G network users as of end-

Winia Daewoo announced on Wednesday that the company has renamed itself Winia Electronics as part of its strategy to reinforce its business at home and abroad. Winia Daewoo is the home appliance unit of Daeyu Winia Group, which was launched in 2018 as the result of Daeyu’s acquisition of Dongbu Daewoo Electronics. The company provides mid-range home appliances, including refrigerators, air conditioners and electronic rice cookers. The rebranding comes after the overseas trademark li

Functional gene-encoding stem cells and mass-production of exosomes as future treatments for neurodegenerative diseases

South Korean memory chipmaker SK hynix announced Tuesday the company will launch the fifth generation of DRAM chips, DDR5, as the first in the world. Compared to its predecessor DDR4, the latest edition is 1.8 times faster and consumes 20 percent less power, making it optimal for big data, artificial intelligence and machine learning solutions. SK had embarked on development of the first 16-gigabit DDR5 in November 2018 and sought cooperation from customers like Intel to complete verificat

Anticipations are high for South Korea’s electronics industry to announce earnings surprises for the third quarter, despite initial worries about the impact of COVID-19, according to industry sources Monday. Due to higher sales of semiconductors, smartphones and home appliances over the last three months, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are forecast to report increased operating profits for the July-September period. According to the latest forecasts by financial market research

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday the budget model of its Galaxy S20 smartphone will go on sale in South Korea next week as the tech giant aims to boost its handset sales amid the pandemic. The Galaxy S20 Fan Edition (FE) will hit local shelves on Oct. 16 with a price tag of 899,800 won ($770), according to Samsung, the world's largest smartphone vendor. Pre-orders for the S20 FE opened Monday for local consumers, and they can receive the device starting Oct. 13. The S20 FE, which was un

South Korea's chipmakers are expected to benefit from the United States' export restrictions against China's leading foundry firm, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), analysts here said Saturday, as the ban could give them more opportunities to secure orders. The US Commerce Department recently added SMIC to its blacklist, saying that exports to the Chinese firm pose an "unacceptable risk" of being used for Beijing's military activities. The move prevents US

South Korean pharmaceutical companies have joined the global race to develop vaccines and treatments for the novel coronavirus, and several of them have received approval for clinical trials from the country's drug safety agency. Among the front-runners is Celltrion Inc.'s antiviral antibody treatment candidate called CT-P59 that is currently undergoing phase two and three trials both at home and abroad. Celltrion said it has completed phase one clinical trials on 32 healthy adults in the coun

South Korea’s first smart city project, involving an area of 2,743,000 square meters in Sejong, is expected to take shape soon as local firms have recently joined the bidding competition. Other smart city projects, including one in Busan, are expected to follow as well. Parties that placed bids include a group led by LG CNS and KT-Hyundai Motor consortiums, according to sources familiar with the pilot smart city project. The successful bidder will work on this 2.5 trillion won ($2.1 bil

Suffering from stalled growth in recent years, the smartphone market remained dull until the first half of this year amid the gloomy sentiment driven by the pandemic. But starting with Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Note 20 launch in August followed by LG Electronics’ new swiveling form factor smartphone in September, the market is seeing consumer excitement grow again with the releases of new models. Among others, the launches of new form factors seem to be leading the overall recov

Samsung Electronics Co. was the world's top smartphone vendor in August, a report showed Tuesday, as it widens the gap with China's Huawei Technologies Co. amid the pandemic. The South Korean tech giant accounted for a 22 percent share of the global smartphone market last month, beating Huawei with a 16 percent share, according to industry tracker Counterpoint Research. The gap of 6 percentage points between the two sides is the largest since February, when China's smartphone market was se

Samsung Electronics Co. said Tuesday it has joined forces with Microsoft Corp. to provide cloud-based private 5G network solutions as the South Korean tech giant tries to expand its presence in the next-generation communications sector. Samsung will deploy its virtualized radio access network (RAN), virtualized core, and multi-access edge computing technologies on Microsoft‘s cloud platform Azure, which will better support private 5G networks in enterprises. “The collaboration hig

Google says only 2% of Korean developers will have to change payment system according to new policy

Google Inc. faced strong backlash from South Korean developers after it announced Monday (US time) it will enforce its app market's billing system, which charges a 30 percent fee to all app developers. While Google has taken a 30 percent cut for all in-app purchases on the Play store through its billing system, some apps have circumvented the rule by using other systems, such as direct credit card payments. "We have clarified the language in our payments policy to be more explicit that al

Fair Trade Commission Chairperson Joh Sung-wook (center) tries out Relumino -- Samsung Electronics’ visual aid application for people with low vision -- during a visit to the gallery of C-Lab, the tech giant’s in-house incubator program, in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. Joh joined Kim Ki-nam, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, and other executives during an event where Samsung announced programs to help partner firms. (khnews@heraldcorp.com)