Microsoft released its latest operating system in South Korea on Wednesday, offering one single platform that works on PCs, as well as smartphones, as the world‘s top software giant sets its sights on claiming the mobile and cloud segments.Windows 10 for desktops and tablet PCs is now available for purchase, with the mobile version to be introduced later in the year, its local unit said at a press briefing.  The price for Windows 10 Home, the version for general users, is set at 172,000 won ($14

Samsung C&T shares on Tuesday fell below a key level set in its $8 billion merger with sister firm Cheil Industries on speculation that Elliott Associates, a key opponent to the deal, may soon sell its stake in the builder. Elliott, the U.S. hedge fund that had launched an agressive campaign to block the merger deal, returned its C&T certificate to the Korea Securities Depository on Monday, meaning it can now sell its 7.1 percent stake in the company.Elliott is also said to have returned the cer

LG Electronics said Monday it would add five new organic light-emitting diode TVs in the coming months, doubling its Korean lineup to a total of 10 models. The Korean tech giant said four of the new models will be “Ultra” models that offer ultrahigh definition displays aimed at appealing to premium customers. New models also feature the company’s Art Slim Design that has further reduced the size of parts and circuits for a slimmer design. For example, the 55-inch Ultra OLED TV boasts a 4.8-milli

LG Display said Thursday it would make a fresh investment of 1.05 trillion won ($900 million) into the production of sixth-generation flexible OLED panels at its plant in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province. The company said it aims to produce 7,500 units of the futuristic display per month from 2017. By producing larger panel sheets, the company hopes to more than quadruple the plant’s production efficiency.LG Display, the world’s largest display-maker by sales, has invested more than 14 trillion w

International hotel chain Marriott is making a big push for IT-oriented services aiming to increase customer convenience and renew its brand image in the digital era. The company recently launched a new mobile app, Meetings Imagined, which allows event planners around the world to better communicate and inspire one another. The app, with a sister website, aims to mimic the successes of popular services like Instagram and Pinterest as it offers latest meeting trends and hundreds of inspirational

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday it planned to pay a combined 14.2 billion won ($12.3 million) in incentives to its 103 chip suppliers in the first half of this year.The Korean tech giant said it was the highest ever amount going to the largest ever number of recipient companies. The company has offered suppliers incentives every year since 2010 as part of its shared-growth efforts with small and medium-sized firms. The recipient companies are decided based on their performance in production,

LG Electronics on Wednesday denied rumors that U.S. search giant Google was mulling to acquire a 35 percent stake, worth 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion), in the company.According to the rumors, Google would acquire the stake in a block deal, but would not participate in the management despite becoming the largest shareholder. Inspite of the company’s denial, LG’s share price soared 14 percent in the morning. The closing price was 43,650 won, up 3.07 percent from the previous day. The share price

Samsung Group heir apparent and Samsung Electronics vice chairman Lee Jay-yong on Tuesday visited the group’s start-up incubation centers in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province to discuss future support plans. The centers opened last year, joining a government-led initiative that aims to nurture start-ups and venture companies across industries. Lee attended the opening ceremony of each center together with President Park Geun-hye.During the visit, Lee, the de facto leader of South Korea’s large

Military prosecutors sought capital punishment for an Army sergeant on Tuesday for killing and wounding a dozen unarmed fellow soldiers in a shooting rampage at a military outpost near the tensely-guarded eastern border with North Korea last year.The 23-year-old conscript, surnamed Lim, detonated a grenade and sprayed a hail of bullets in June last year in the military outpost of the 22nd Infantry Division stationed near the east-coastal front line, killing five comrades and wounding seven other

LG CNS, a leading Korean information technology solution provider, said Tuesday it has secured a 130 billion won ($112 million) project to build a 33-megawatt solar power plant on the island of Kyushu, Japan. Together with the latest deal, the company has won three solar power projects in Japan, with their combined power capacity reaching 43 megawatts.  The company said the plant will be located in the city of Imaichi, Oita Prefecture. Its construction will take about two years. Its sister compa

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering said Tuesday that its restructuring will focus on selling noncore properties and stock assets, dismissing news reports of workforce reduction.Rumors about DSME’s possible job cuts emerged after company CEO Jung Sung-leep announced over the weekend that the shipbuilder would launch a restructuring program aimed at cutting costs, including relocating manpower and job rotation.The CEO fanned speculation of massive layoffs when he said at the company’s worksh

 WASHINGTON -- The Cuban flag has flown proudly over Havana's newly restored embassy as the US and Cuba relaunched diplomatic ties but swiftly cautioned that sharp differences lingered after five decades of enmity.Some seven months after President Barack Obama and his Cuban counterpart Raul Castro agreed to restore ties snapped in 1961 during the Cold War, Havana and Washington reopened full embassies in the two capitals Monday.The Cuban flag flies in front of the country's embassy for the first

Outside the headquarters of Daum Kakao in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, on Monday, two groups clashed over the Korean search giant’s hot-selling taxi-hailing service, KakaoTaxi. One group, representing chauffeur service companies nationwide, protested against the company’s possible entry into a market that is crowded with smaller players, while the other group, representing their drivers, urged it to enter and solve the industry’s unfair treatment of drivers. “It is true that we are working on the

Samsung Group’s leadership transfer to the next generation is speeding up on the heels of Friday’s shareholder approval of the crucial merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries. The merged entity, set to be launched on Sept. 1 as Samsung C&T, will become the de facto holding company of South Korea’s largest conglomerate. The merger marks a watershed moment for Samsung’s restructuring that started in 2013 to increase the influence of Samsung Electronics vice chairman Lee Jay-yong, the heir appar

LG Display, Korea’s top display-maker, said Thursday that its production of large LCD and OLED panels has hit the 1.5 billion mark for the first time within the industry.The new milestone comes after the company started producing large LCD panels back in 1995, the company said. Large panels, those 9.1 inches or larger, are used for computer monitors, laptop computer screens and TVs. The 1.5 billion units are equivalent to 236,793,391 square meters of panels, the company said. “LG Display has con

Samsung Group’s top executives on Wednesday expressed confidence in winning the upcoming crucial vote on the merger deal between Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries. “We are confident about the merger approval. We want to win big,” said Samsung C&T co-CEO Kim Shin before attending a weekly executive meeting of Samsung affiliates at the group’s Seoul headquarters. “There are also several foreign shareholders who support the deal. We are making all-out efforts to attract favorable votes.”Cheil Indust

Tesla, the U.S. electric sports car maker, is turning its eyes to Korea in its latest push for the all-important Asian market amid lukewarm Chinese sales. According to a job posting on its Japanese website on Tuesday, the carmaker is searching for a vice president who will lead its Japanese and Korean sales teams. “Our Japan-Korea sales vice president will be focused on all of Tesla’s direct sales activities in the Japanese and Korean markets, ensuring the attainment of both short- and long-term

Samsung Group on Monday unveiled 10 new research and development projects on smart sensor materials and system software it would support as part of its efforts to nurture the nation’s future growth-engine technologies. Samsung launched the R&D support program in 2013 with a total budget of 1.5 trillion won ($1.3 billion) for the next 10 years. Thus far some 160 projects have been selected for support.While the program focuses on three key areas -- basic science, materials and information and com

Samsung C&T is thoroughly gauging the decisions of foreign investors, most of whom finished their absentee voting last week on the company’s planned merger with Cheil Industries, the de facto holding company of Samsung Group. With the voting results to be revealed at a shareholders meeting Friday, their decisions are expected to play a key role in determining the crucial 8.9 trillion won ($7.93 billion) merger for the nation’s largest conglomerate’s management transfer to a new generation. Forei