[THE INVESTOR] Korean fingerprint module maker CrucialTec said on July 14 it will supply its mobile fingerprint module, BTP, to Huawei’s upcoming new smartphone Honor 8. The Honor 8 features a 5.2-inch curved glass display, a 12 mega pixel dual camera, and is powered by an in-house octa-core Kirin 950 processor. The pricing and launch date have not been disclosed. Huawei’s Honor 8CrucialTec has supplied BTP to Huawei’s premium lineup, including the Mate 8 and the P9, and the latest mid-range Hon

South Koreans have recently been in a frenzy over characters created by two rival mobile messenger apps -- whether it is Line’s blank-faced bear named Brown or Kakao’s Muzi, who looks like a rabbit but is actually a radish in a costume.　Eyeing new market potential, Line Corp. and Kakao Corp. have brought their signature characters -- initially introduced as virtual stickers used on the messengers apps -- into the physical world where they have been reborn as character merchandise. Though Line, a

[THE INVESTOR] Tech giants Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are expected to benefit from an increasing demand for high-end TV products, including ultra-high definition TVs, at home and abroad, according to a report July 14.The report by the Science Ministry and Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute cites the planned commercialization of UHD broadcasting services in Korea in February 2017 as the main reason behind the sales increase in the coming years.UHD TVs valued at 1.2

[THE INVESTOR] LG Electronics has emerged as a serious competitor in the all-important US smartphone market where Samsung Electronics and Apple are still dominant players. According to the latest sales data from Kantar Worldpanel, Samsung and Apple are still the most favored smartphone brands in the US, having captured capturing 37 percent and 29 percent of total sales, respectively, in the three-month period ending in May. LG’s latest flagship G5During the same period, LG’s market share soared

[THE INVESTOR] Mark Hurd, the co-chief executive of California-based Oracle, may be close to striking software deals with local conglomerates that could include Samsung and POSCO, according to those close to the matter.The co-CEO of the San Francisco-based company arrived in Seoul on July 14 to meet with executives from these partner firms. “There may be several big deals being negotiated behind the scenes,” said one industry watcher, declining to be identified.Mark Hurd, co-CEO of US software g

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics’ flagship smartphone Galaxy S7 has managed to outsell Apple’s iPhone 6S in the US for the first time. According to market research firm Kantar Worldpanel, 16 percent of American consumers purchased Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge for the three-month period ending in May, while 14.6 percent chose an iPhone 6S or 6S Plus during the same period. Samsung Galaxy S7 (left) and Apple's iPhone 6SEven though the Samsung phones are newer handsets by half a year, Apple’s iPhones hav

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics officially introduced its Serif TV models in the US market on Wednesday, in collaboration with New York City’s landmark gallery Museum of Modern Arts.Designed by France’s Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, the model takes its design and name after the shape of the alphabet “I” in the “Serif” font. Due to its stylish qualities, MoMA has uncharacteristically lent its venues for the launch event and will continue to offer support by displaying it in its stores.Serif TV i

[THE INVESTOR] LINE Corp.’s simultaneous initial public offerings in Japan and the U.S. this week were nearly 25 times oversubscribed with deposits totaling 2.77 trillion yen ($2.66 billion), according to lead managers of the dual stock listings on Thursday. 　LINE, operator of its namesake immensely popular mobile messaging app, will make its stock debut on the New York Stock Exchange on July 14 and Tokyo Stock Exchange the next day. Naver board chairman Lee Hae-jinReflecting keen interest among

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung SDS, the IT solutions unit of Samsung Group, said Thursday it has decided to invest in U.K.-based security solutions developer Darktrace and Korean blockchain venture Blocko. 　“With the latest investments, we aim to carry out diverse ICT projects,” the company said in a statement.“We will strengthen our security solutions and services through Darktrace’s next-generation security solutions, while with Blocko we will apply blockchain technology to diverse areas such as the I

[THE INVESTOR] Korean Internet giant Naver plans to unveil its own voice recognition system specialized in Korean language next year, industry sources said on July 13. Based on its own data analysis and artificial intelligence technology, the company aims to unveil the system mimicking Apple’s Siri as early as in January next year. Global IT companies are rolling out their own voice recognition systems mostly in English but it is rare for them to offer Korean language service due to their lack o

South Korea's exports of information and communication technology products fell 5.1 percent in June due mainly to a slump in sales of mobile phones and displays, government data showed Thursday ICT exports reached $13.48 billion last month, down from $14.21 billion a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Exports of ICT goods accounted for 29.8 percent of the country's $45.3 billion in overall shipments abroad over the cited period.South Korea's ex

[THE INVESTOR] LINE Corp.’s simultaneous initial public offerings in Japan and the US this week were nearly 25 times oversubscribed with deposits totaling 2.77 trillion yen (US$2.66 billion), according to lead managers of the dual stock listings on July 14. LINE, operator of its namesake immensely popular mobile messaging app, will make its stock debut on the New York Stock Exchange on July 14 and Tokyo Stock Exchange the next day. Naver board chairman Lee Hae-jinReflecting keen interest among i

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung SDS, the IT solutions unit of Samsung Group, said on July 14 it has recently decided to invest into UK-based security solutions developer Darktrace and Korean blockchain venture Blocko. “With the latest investments, we aim to carry out diverse ICT projects,” the company said in a statement. “We will strengthen our security solutions and services through Darktrace’s next-generation security solutions, while with Blocko we will apply blockchain technology to diverse areas su

[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics outran other global integrated device manufacturers in the semiconductor foundry sector in the Jan.-March period in terms of sales, according to market research firm IHS on July 13.The Korean chip company’s foundry business is forecast to have earned $613 million in sales in the first quarter, the largest among the global device manufacturers. The figure is three times more than that of runner-up Micron, which made $198 million.Samsung Electronics’ mobile appli

[THE INVESTOR] Netmarble Games, a South Korean game producer, said on July 13 that it will release “Soul King,” a comedic mobile role playing game, in 154 countries including Japan and North America.The game provides about 370 characters, and players take missions to defeat evil at each level to protect the Kingdom of Dune. The game was released in South Korea on June 15. Established in 2000, the firm was ranked eighth in global mobile game revenue last year, according to the company’s website.