Jan 20, 2020

KCC conditionally approves SK Broadband, T-broad merger

The Korea Communications Commission on Monday conditionally approved a merger between SK Telecom’s pay TV unit, SK Broadband, and T-broad, the country’s No. 2 cable TV operator. After its meeting on Monday, the KCC announced that it had approved the merger under 14 conditions and three suggestions, which will require the company to protect users’ rights and serve the public interest. The KCC will deliver the results of its review to the ICT Ministry, which is expected to issue

Jan 20, 2020

CheongKwanJang collaborates with Spain’s Vicens

Red ginseng health supplement brand CheongKwanJang of Korea Ginseng Corp. said Monday it has collaborated with Spain’s renowned chocolate and nougat brand Vicens.The products, released last month, are the result of a partnership between the 120-year-old South Korean firm and Vicens -- with 250 years of tradition -- to introduce six different chocolate types featuring red ginseng. Vicens has been making chocolates and turrons (nougats) since its establishment in 1775. The latest collaborati

Jan 20, 2020

[Monitor] Chip exports down, car exports up

Semiconductors, usually South Korea’s main export item, accounted for less than 20 percent of all exports in 2019, data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association, the Trade Ministry and the Korea Customs Service showed.On the other hand, automobiles, on the back of buoyed sales of sport utility vehicles and eco-friendly cars, were the country’s No. 2 export item. While the actual number of cars delivered overseas dropped by 1.9 percent from 2018, their export value increa

Jan 20, 2020

Free ‘dark nudge’ gimmicks spook online subscribers

Online “dark nudge” services -- free trial subscriptions -- are rattling South Koreans who end up paying fees they do not anticipate, according to the consumer agency Monday.A number of online services, such as music and media streaming sites lure consumers by offering trial subscription and automatically charge the users for the service after the period is over. This small “nudge” of free trial periods are used by businesses targeting consumers who are not very careful a

Jan 20, 2020

Business, political leaders mourn Lotte founder

Feuding brothers of Lotte family meet again for first time in over a year

Jan 20, 2020

[Photo News] Sharing warmth

S-Oil CEO Hussain A. Al-Qahtani (second from left) hands out meals to the homeless on Monday, as part of the company’s annual Lunar New Year’s volunteer activity. The company said some 100 employees have participated to offer meals and food products to the homeless and some 500 households, including senior citizens and the disabled. S-Oil has been conducting Lunar New Year’s volunteer activity for 14 consecutive years, dating to 2007.

Jan 20, 2020

SKT plans to offer 5G stand-alone service in H1

SK Telecom Co., South Korea's top mobile carrier, said Monday it plans to launch a 5G stand-alone service in the first half of the year after a test on its commercial 5G network was successful. Its stand-alone 5G data call using the company's multi-vendor commercial 5G network in Busan last week ended successfully, according to SKT. The result means the company can provide a 5G standalone service through a software upgrade without replacing its base stations.For its standalone 5G network, SKT sa

Jan 20, 2020

Late Lotte founder’s asset inheritance unlikely to affect group

The demise of Lotte Group founder and Honorary Chairman Shin Kyuk-ho on Sunday has put the spotlight on the distribution of his assets amongst his kin, reportedly worth over 1 trillion won ($864 million).However, market watchers are of the opinion that it will not affect the current leadership structure of Lotte Group, led by his second son and Chairman Shin Dong-bin. The inheritance is expected to be finalized through family counseling under the guidance of a legal representative. The late Shin

Jan 20, 2020

CJ ENM's W25.3b K-pop investment fund to launch

CJ ENM, the operator of K-pop-oriented cable channel Mnet, said Monday it will launch a 25.3 billion-won ($21.8 million) investment fund dedicated to the K-pop industry.The establishment of the fund, KC Vivace Investment Association, is in line with the entertainment giant's pledge three weeks earlier to set up a 30 billion-won investment fund to apologize for vote manipulation in a fan-voted Mnet K-pop audition show. Chief producers of the popular audition show, "Produce 101," are sta

Jan 20, 2020

S. Korea to jack up spending on energy R&D in 2020

South Korea said Monday it will spend more on research and development  in the energy segment this year as the country targets clean and sustainable economic growth.South Korea will spend 916.3 billion won ($789 million), a 19-percent rise from last year, on such projects, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Most of the money will be allocated to projects related to South Korea's green energy drive.Last year, Seoul unveiled its initiative to create a hydrogen economy, s

Jan 19, 2020

[Graphic News] Exports of processed rice goods up 20% in 2019

　South Korea’s outbound shipments of processed rice products shot up last year, amid the booming popularity of Korean dramas, K-pop and other cultural content abroad, data showed.　Exports of these products reached $106 million in 2019, marking a sharp rise from $89 million posted a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The exports also nearly doubled from $55 million posted in 2015.　These products cover a wide range of food items, such as snacks, n

Jan 19, 2020

Legendary Lotte founder passes away, leaving behind bitter sons

 Lotte Group founder and Honorary Chairman Shin Kyuk-ho passed away Sunday at age 97, leaving as his legacy a self-made business empire, although his later years were marred by a family feud.He was the last of the first-generation founders of the major conglomerates -- the other four being Samsung, Hyundai, LG and SK. Shin was a self-made entrepreneur who started Lotte as a maker of chewing gum and grew the business into the nation’s fifth-largest conglomerate, operating in the food,

Jan 19, 2020

[Monitor] Eco-friendly cars on rise in Korea

Number and share of registered electric, hydrogen, hybrid cars

Jan 19, 2020

JP Morgan 2020 closes, with deals hanging in air

SAN FRANCISCO -- The 38th JP Morgan Healthcare Conference 2020 came to a close Thursday, with small and big deals still covered under wraps.Being the biggest annual gathering of pharmaceuticals companies presenting each of their pipelines’ research progress, JP Morgan conference in San Francisco has often concluded in mega deals that drew eyes. In 2015, Korea’s Hanmi Pharmaceutical was invited to the conference, where it presented its major pipelines and ended up licensing out to big