The National Assembly on Thursday voted down a bill intended to loosen the eligibility requirement for the largest shareholder of an internet-only bank. A revision of the Act on Special Cases Concerning Establishment and Operation of Internet-only Banks failed to pass in parliament, as 82 of 184 lawmakers on hand in the plenary session voted against it. Only 75 lawmakers voted for the bill while 27 abstained. The revision bill calls for removing a record of antitrust and taxation law violatio

LG CNS said Thursday that its in-house unit Hempking -- launched in 2018 -- has been spun off after the success of its customs service system that utilizes artificial intelligence and robotic process automation technologies. The newly developed solution can reduce the time required for customs clearance. Instead of the five hours it takes for a single item cargo the time can be cut down to five minutes, according to the company. The AI-based computer program uses optical character reader to r

Samsung Electronics said Thursday it has clinched a 5G network supply deal with New Zealand’s largest mobile carrier Spark. The South Korean tech giant said it will help establish Spark’s 5G network later this year with its latest new radio solutions -- including slim and lightweight massive multiple-input and multiple-output units. The equipment provides carriers with more flexible and scalable solutions that are simple and cost-effective to deploy, to accelerate commercial 5G

Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor division has launched its own artificial intelligence research center and is scouting global talent, according to industry sources Wednesday. The new unit under the Device Solutions division has been named Data & Information Technology Center, and is headed by Shim Eun-soo, senior vice president who led AI software research at Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology. The purpose of the new research body is related to applying AI technologies to

Samsung SDS has signed a memorandum of understanding with Credorax, an Israel-based fintech and smart payments provider to nations in the European Union and European Economic Area, according to the company on Wednesday. The two companies will cooperate on Samsung SDS’ Nexledger Universal platform to develop a blockchain-based finance solution for bank and merchants so they can automatically reconcile payments, remittances and invoices with their bank records. The partners also aim to d

LG Display, Samsung Display start to downsize LCD business, expansion of OLED hampered by coronavirus spread

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Tuesday visited the company’s smartphone plant in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, to encourage employees who are working despite the coronavirus risks in the region. The plant produces Samsung’s latest premium smartphones, including the Galaxy S20 and Galaxy Z Flip. But with a total of four confirmed cases of coronavirus infections among its employees, it had to shut down twice as of Monday.  Lee, with a face mask, checked

The semiconductor industry, bellwether for the South Korean economy, showed signs of recovery last month, despite the aggravating coronavirus woes, according to various indicators Tuesday. The country’s total chip exports grew 9.4 percent to $7.42 billion in February compared to the same month last year, data by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed. It was the first on-year growth in silicon exports in 15 months. In spite of the extended Chinese Lunar New Year holiday l

Samsung Electronics’ mobile business factory based in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, has confirmed the fourth case of coronavirus infection among its workforce, according to authorities Monday. An office worker at the Gumi site has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the company reported. All of the office rooms on the same floor as the confirmed patient have now been cleared for disinfection. “There is no shutdown of the production lines in the Gumi site as of yet,&r

South Korea’s top mobile carrier SK Telecom is betting on high-end virtual and augmented reality technologies to increase its foothold, despite the complexity. Backed by many years of sturdy investments and its 5G mobile network, SKT has been releasing pilot VR/AR services -- promoted in the form of virtual zoo, for instance -- with the aim of eventually creating a whole new experience for customers. Behind its initiatives in the newly emerging market is Jeon Jin-soo, vice president a

SK Siltron said Monday it has acquired the silicon carbide wafer business of Michigan-based DuPont to enter the electric vehicle and 5G network markets. The affiliate of SK Group -- the only wafer producer in South Korea -- decided in September to acquire the SiC wafer business from DuPont for 540 billion won ($450 million). The deal was concluded Saturday. SiC wafer is a next-generation chip material that is a compound of silicon and carbon, offering unique electrical and thermal propertie

Local platforms need to push ahead with investments in original contents if they seek overseas expansion

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's largest mobile carrier, said Sunday it has formed an international alliance with nine telecommunication firms to develop 5G mobile edge computing (MEC) technologies and services. SK Telecom said Telecom Edge Cloud TF was established with nine other companies at a GSMA meeting in London last week. Its members include Deutsche Telekom AG of Germany, KDDI Corp. of Japan and EE Ltd. of Britain. The TF aims to have global commercialization of 5G MEC by sharing each

Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-mobile, will start testing the 5G radio frequency repeater that it co-developed with SK Telecom during the second quarter of this year, according to a statement released by the South Korean mobile carrier on Thursday. SK Telecom’s 5G radio frequency repeater is a wireless device that receives 5G signals from outside and transmits it to users inside buildings and tunnels and on basement floors. In the second quarter of this year, Deutsche Telekom

Samsung Display said Thursday its organic light-emitting diode panels for 5G smartphones have been certified as energy-saving and eye-care displays by multiple international organizations. The company is a major supplier for the latest Galaxy S20 series. SGS, a Switzerland-based certification institute, said Samsung’s latest OLED display for smartphones emit 6.5 percent blue light, the lowest percentage among comparable products. As of last year, other firms’ OLED products produ