The Korea Herald

안녕하세요 Chung Joo-won 기자입니다.

Articles by Chung Joo-won

KT to spin off satellite unit into separate firm

TechnologyNov 23, 2012

KT Corp. said Friday that it will spin off its satellite business division into a separate firm.Company officials said the plan was endorsed at a shareholders’ meeting in Seoul on Friday. The new satellite firm, tentatively named “kt sat,” will start out on Dec. 1 with 50 billion won in capital, the company said. KT will wholly own kt sat, and the present KT Corp. Center chief Kim Il-yung will head the new firm. Focusing on satellite service business, kt sat reflects KT’s strategy to expand its
The Shilla Seoul to close for refurbishment

Nov 23, 2012

The Shilla Seoul said Friday that it would close in January for about six months for a major refurbishment. The hotel said that it would cease all hotel services during the six-month revamp, except the Shilla Duty Free Shop, which will be open throughout the refurbishment period. Having been built more than three decades ago, the hotel building needs to renovate the guestrooms and bathrooms, hotel officials said. They said that the project will only involve the interior of the hotel and not the
NPS chief Jun to serve one more year

Nov 23, 2012

The government decided to extend the term of National Pension Service chief Jun Kwang-woo by a year, officials said on Friday.The NPS chief’s three-year tenure was due to expire early next month.Health and welfare officials said the government made the decision in consideration of the performance the pension service achieved under Jun.According to officials, the number of subscribers of the national pension surpassed 20 million people and the NPS’ combined operating profits it collected by fund
FILA Global chief Yoon wins Ernst & Young award

IndustryNov 23, 2012

FILA Korea Ltd. and FILA Global chairman and CEO Gene Yoon won the sixth Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, or EOY, organizers said on Friday. The award is created to pioneer outstanding leaders of business whose strength and leadership inspire world. Out of six EOY awardees, Yoon won this year’s EOY Master’s Award in recognition of his excellence in mergers and acquisitions he showed in merging the global sports brand FILA, Ernst & Young Hanyoung said. In 2011, Yoon also succeeded in
ZTE sees Korean market test bed for global match

TechnologyNov 21, 2012

China’s No. 1 smartphone maker ZTE Corp. said it will target the Korean niche-market of smartphones, calling its Korean operation a screen-test for the global war against Korean tech titans such as Samsung and LG.Currently the Chinese handset firm targets the low-cost, third-generation device sector of the Korean smartphone market. In contrast to public opinion that Korea has completely switched over to Long Term Evolution devices, about 10 percent of customers in Korea are still willing to purc
Kakao seeks 1 million partners with new apps

TechnologyNov 20, 2012

Mobile communication venture firm Kakao launched three new mobile service platforms on Tuesday, aiming to secure at least 1 million individual and group partners in three years. Before the launch, Kakao had 31 mobile game partners and 260-some “plus friend” partner companies. In unveiling the new applications ― Kakao Page, Story Plus and Chatting Plus ― the mobile venture tech firm is poised to convert itself from customer-centered social servant to a powerful marketing-booster to its business p
Dongbu Insurance pays highest starting salary

TechnologyNov 19, 2012

Dongbu Insurance Co. pays the highest annual salaries to first-year employees, beating the former best-paying company Samsung Fire and Marine Insurance Co., according to news reports. Unlike the public conception that Samsung affiliate companies offer the highest annual starting salaries, Samsung Fire and Marine Insurance Co. ranked No. 3 despite its No. 1 performance in business Yonhap News said. Before tax reduction, the annual salaries for first-year employees with bachelor’s degrees was the
KT&G to launch Tonino Lamborghini overseas

TechnologyNov 19, 2012

The nation’s best-selling tobacco manufacturer KT&G Corp. will export 300,000 packs of its premium tobacco brand “Tonino Lamborghini” to Hong Kong by the end of November. KT&G has already sold “Tonino Lamborghini” in Chinese duty-free shops since September, with its first import order at 488,000 packs. China and Hong Kong together form the largest, most competitive tobacco market in the world, the company said. “From the beginning, Tonino Lamborghini was meant to be launched worldwide,” a KT&G o
Korean e-procurement system booming worldwide

Nov 18, 2012

KONEPS, or Korea Online E-procurement System, is drawing more attention from abroad than ever, the Public Procurement Service said. The Korean e-procurement system provides a convenient one-stop service, enabling users to process all necessary operations for procurement ― registration, bidding, contract, and payment ― together, PPS said. Korea has signed multiple memorandums of understanding with 19 countries worldwide on e-procurement. PPS Administrator Kang Ho-in said, “Exporting KONEPS is an
Samsung Electronics takes largest global TV market share

TechnologyNov 18, 2012

Samsung Electronics held the biggest share of the global television market in the third quarter this year, U.S. marketing research firm NPD DisplaySearch said Sunday. The affiliate firm of American market research company NPD Group Inc. said that Samsung Electronics rated No. 1 in the July-September quarter by taking a 25.2 percent share in the global flat-screen TV market. According to the same analysis, four types of Samsung TVs ― liquid crystal display, light-emitting diode, plasma display pa
KT chairman wins Asia business leaders award

TechnologyNov 18, 2012

KT Corp. chairman Lee Suk-chae won the 11th CNBC Asia Business Leaders Award in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, the mobile operator said on Sunday.The award acknowledges Asian business visionaries with strength, innovation, ingenuity, knowledge and foresight that are especially required for the leaders of today’s global economy. One of the six awardees this year, Lee won the accolade in recognition of his personal involvement in supporting and fostering the next generation of leaders. Lee has beco
Kwon ranks fifth in list of top Fortune businesspersons

TechnologyNov 18, 2012

Samsung Electronics CEO Kwon Oh-hyun was ranked fifth out of 50 CEOs in “2012 Businessperson of the Year” selected by global business magazine Fortune, followed by Google CEO Larry Page who ranked sixth. Fortune evaluated Kwon as a CEO who has successfully run the $149 billion Samsung Electronics empire since June 2012 as the head of component business. “Under Kwon, the Korean company became the second-largest chipmaker in the world. Now the new CEO has to contend with its top customer and compe
Korea eyes Mideast, E. Europe for hallyu sales

TechnologyNov 14, 2012

The Middle East and Eastern Europe are the next strategic long-term markets for Korean cultural content, the Korea Communications Commission said Wednesday. Through its sub-organization Korea Internet Security Agency, the KCC spends about 800 million won ($730,000) every year to showcase Korean TV content, which has been one most popular types of Korean cultural product overseas. Sponsored by the KCC, a group of KISA officials held four one-day showcases each in Turkey, Bulgaria and Jordan betwe
‘Starcraft II’ expansion ‘Heart of the Swarm,’ to be released next year

TechnologyNov 14, 2012

“Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm,” the first expansion pack of “Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty,” will be released in March next year, game developer and publisher Blizzard Entertainment said Tuesday. “Heart of the Swarm” features new units, including Terran Hellbats, Zerg Swarm Hosts and Protoss Tempests, along with new maps. The expansion set has about 20 campaign missions, and provides an enhanced battle net service, Blizzard said at a “Starcraft” community party held in Seoul.“With ‘Heart of
Microsoft unveils New Office with cloud computing feature

TechnologyNov 13, 2012

Microsoft Korea Inc. launched its latest suite of programs for word processing and emails for corporate use on Tuesday.New Office for home use will most likely be launched in the first quarter of 2013, two Microsoft officials told The Korea Herald.“I think nearly all the functions in New Office are new in the market,” Microsoft Korea marketing director Kang Hee-sun said, claiming that now is a significant transition period for software and devices. The Korean operation of U.S. software titan Mic