The South Korean Fair Trade Commission has launched an internal review of Tesla’s advertisement that describes the car’s autopilot function as self-driving technology, according to industry sources Sunday. The watchdog is examining whether Tesla violated fair labeling and advertising laws, and has made inquiries into the Trade Ministry and related authorities regarding self-driving technology. The FTC’s decision came amid growing controversies over Tesla’s misleadin

Korea Gas Corp. said Sunday it would set up a joint venture with Hyundai Motor Group to build and run integrated hydrogen charging stations after signing a memorandum to expand sustainable hydrogen infrastructure and boost competitiveness in the hydrogen business. According to the state-run natural gas company, the integrated hydrogen charging stations can accommodate eco-friendly vehicles that run on hydrogen, liquefied natural gas and electricity. Also, they can produce, charge and sell hy

Smilegate said Thursday a 36-episode drama series based on its first-person shooter game CrossFire will be broadcast in China starting Monday. Launched in 2007, CrossFire is the most popular FPS game in China, with accumulated global revenue of 12.6 trillion won ($10.4 billion). According to the South Korean game maker, CrossFire is the first Korean game played professionally in an esports competition to be turned into a drama series. Smilegate and Chinese drama production company Youhug Me

Controversy is brewing over the South Korean military’s decision to alter rules in relation to key parts for K2 tanks that had failed previous test numerous times. According to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration on Thursday, it will run another test on a tank transmission system built by a domestic company S&T Dynamics based on revised terms. The system failed performance tests six times in 2014. DAPA’s change of test rules is seen as an attempt to materialize the

SK Gas said Thursday it has introduced its first Eco Station, a hydrogen and liquefied petroleum gas charging station equipped with café, unmanned convenience store and premium DIY car washing facility. According to South Korea’s leading LPG supplier, it opened its first Eco Station in Namdong-gu, Incheon. The Eco Station, which was previously an LPG charging station, added a hydrogen charging facility last November and recently installed unmanned CU convenience store and DIY ca

Unity, a licensed game engine, is in full throttle in South Korea as the domestic industry is seeking a major shift to the mobile sphere with the engine. According to Unity Technologies Korea, eight mobile games that have been or will be launched in Korea this year are based on its game engine as increasingly more companies here are making mobile versions of their popular PC games. “Unity’s game engine, optimized for mobile game development, is supporting legendary games that w

South Korea’s Lotte Chemical took home three awards at the Red Dot Design Award this year, the company said Wednesday. Arranged by Germany’s Design Zentrum Nordheim Westfalen, the Red Dot Design Award is one of the three most recognized design awards alongside the iF Design Award and IDEA Design Award. According to Lotte Chemical, its multi layered 3D lighting effect was crowned Best of the Best in the surface and design category. Lotte designed the effect by applying laser beam

S-Oil said Wednesday it has provided 60 million won ($49,975) to 31 firefighters who have suffered injuries during their missions, continuing its support of firefighters for 12 consecutive years. According to the South Korean refiner, it recently held a donation ceremony with the Korea National Council on Social Welfare at the Mapo Fire Station in western Seoul, and distributed the amount among 31 firefighters injured during firefighting, rescue and first aid missions. Since 2009, S-Oil ha

LG Chem said Tuesday that it has filed a criminal complaint with the prosecution against SK Innovation, accusing it of stealing trade secrets concerning electric vehicle batteries. The SK Group affiliate is already being probed by the South Korean police and the US International Trade Commission. According to LG Chem, it filed the complaint with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office last week because the Seoul police investigation -- upon its complaint in May last year -- is

President Moon Jae-in’s push for hydrogen economy has created a perfect window for Korean conglomerates to create synergies with their affiliates and find a new growth engine in the burgeoning industry. On Tuesday, President Moon, who aims to roll out 6.2 million hydrogen vehicles and 1,200 charging stations by 2040, held a videoconference with Hyundai Motor Group Executive Vice Chairman Chung Euisun to discuss specific plans to take the lead in the global hydrogen vehicle market and t

Hanwha Defense on Tuesday received a record score on a government productivity test, becoming the first company in South Korea to attain level 8 out of 10. According to the Korean defense company, it scored 722.6 points on the Productivity Management System test conducted by the Industry Ministry and the Korea Productivity Center, getting level 8 in six of the seven categories: leadership; innovation; customers; workforce; process; and measurement, analysis and knowledge management. Level

One life mission for automakers is to find electric vehicle batteries that are cheap, yet powerful enough to offer a long range, as they account for more than 40 percent of the total cost of a vehicle’s parts. Though the two goals may sound incompatible, theoretically it’s possible. Lithium-ion batteries consist of four key components: cathodes, anodes, electrolytes and separators. The cathode is what determines a battery’s energy capacity. In theory, when battery maker

South Korea’s public pension fund National Pension Service unloaded its 0.6 percent stake in domestic game company NCSoft to acquire a 0.28 percent stake of nation’s top portal operator Naver, government data showed Thursday. According to regulatory filings, NPS sold off 54,438 shares of NCSoft on Tuesday and bought 452,938 shares of Naver on the same day. As a result, NPS’s stake in NCSoft fell to 11.82 percent from 11.22 percent while its stake in Naver rose to 12.84 pe

Hanwha Energy said Thursday it has won a solar power plant deal with 50 megawatt capacity in Spain. According to the Hanwha Group affiliate, it has signed a contract with Spanish firm GRS for the construction of the solar power plant in Seville, Spain. The plant will be completed by the end of this year at the earliest. The Las Naranjillas plant, equipped with 121,800 solar modules, is expected to generate electricity enough for 13,997 households and reduce 51,977 metric tons of carbon dio

The South Korean game industry propelled the nation’s content exports last year, clocking $6.9 billion, more than 10 times that of the music industry’s $640 million, according to a report released by the Ministry of Culture and Korea Creative Content Agency on Tuesday. The report noted that the Korean game industry’s exports grew 8.9 percent on-year last year, commanding 67.2 percent of the nation’s total content exports of $10.3 billion and topping 10 other industries.