Google said that it has bought Songza, a free online streaming music service that recommends tunes based on what people might be in the mood to hear.The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but unconfirmed online reports valued the deal at around $15 million.“We’re thrilled to announce that we’re becoming part of Google,” Songza announced on its website.“We can’t think of a better company to join in our quest to provide the perfect soundtrack for everything you do.”Songza added that n

Samsung SDI, a battery arm of Samsung Group, said Tuesday it would suspend the production of plasma display panels at end-November and instead focus on its materials and energy businesses.The company said in its regulatory filing that the decision is based on falling demand for PDP TVs. The division’s sales last year were 1.5 trillion won ($1.48 billion), 31.1 percent of the company‘s total.“While reusable facilities and parts from the PDP production lines will be utilized for the battery busine

Samsung SDI, the world’s top maker of TV displays and smartphone batteries, said Monday it has completed the procedures related to its merger with Cheil Industries, adding the new entity will kick off this week.The announcement came about three months after Samsung SDI unveiled a plan to merge with the Samsung arm that produces electronic and chemical materials. The new entity, set to be launched on Tuesday, will maintain the same name.Samsung SDI said the new entity is targeting sales of 29 tri

South Korea’s Science Ministry said Monday it will have mobile carriers slash their enrollment fees and smartphone prices and offer more diverse service plans to help lower telecommunications costs for households.In measures that precede detailed policy guidelines due in November, the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning said it will first slash the enrollment fee of carrier service by 50 percent in the third quarter, and also cut the price of universal subscriber identity modules by 10

Kakao Talk, a free messenger service provided by Kakao Corp., rose to third place in local brand value, research showed Monday, backed by its market share of more than 90 percent in the sector. Kakao Talk's Brand Stock Top Index (BSTI) reached 915.4 points out of 1,000 in the second quarter, up a notch from a quarter earlier, the data compiled by market researcher Brand Stock showed.BSTI is calculated by running a mock stock-trading test on about 900 brands and adding figures compiled from consu

LG Electronics said Sunday that it has joined the Open Automotive Alliance, a group of global carmakers and tech giants, such as General Motors, Hyundai Motor, Honda and NVIDIA, committed to integrating Google’s Android operating system with cars. The Korea tech firm showcased its new range of audio, visual and navigation solutions for connected cars at Google’s annual developer conference held in San Francisco last week. LG’s AVN system, which is expected to be available by 2015, enables driver

South Korea's telecom watchdog said Thursday it will impose a fine of 85 million won ($83,554) on the country's top fixed-line operator, KT Corp., over its recent data leak incident, a decision that will strengthen an ongoing class action lawsuit by the victims of the leak.The Korea Communications Commission decided on the disciplinary measure after hackers stole some 11.7 million pieces of personal information from 9.81 million KT subscribers through the company's website between August 2013 an