South Korean biopharma company Green Cross said Thursday that its self-developed quadrivalent influenza vaccine has obtained the World Health Organization’s prequalification approval.　The approval grants Green Cross eligibility to join the United Nation’s procurement bid for influenza vaccines in the future to potentially win vaccine supply orders from UN affiliates such as UNICEF and PAHO.Green Cross’ GC Flu Quadrivalent is able to protect against four strains of influenza -- two influenza A st

South Korean retail giant Lotte Group said Wednesday that it will build a new shopping assistance chatbot using IBM’s artificial intelligence system Watson with an aim to provide customized shopping support to customers.Lotte signed a partnership with IBM Korea in Seoul on Wednesday, agreeing to adopt the US tech giant’s cognitive computing software for use by Lotte’s various retail and consumer goods units, including the Lotte Department Store.“Faced with a rapidly changing business environment

South Korea’s leading motel-booking app operator Yanolja said Wednesday that it has signed a strategic partnership with Minda, another homegrown startup which facilitates bookings for Korean guesthouses overseas.Under the new partnership, which will involve unspecified investments, Yanolja will add some 1,600 Minda-registered lodging options around the world to its app, widening user options.With the addition, Yanolja will now operate a network of more than 30,000 motels and guesthouses in and o

Philips Korea, the local branch of Dutch health care company Philips, said Tuesday that it donated dental and household goods worth 35 million won ($29,300) to a local hospital for disabled children.　The company has delivered items including sonic electronic toothbrushes, kitchen appliances, vacuum cleaners and clothing irons to the Purme Foundation Nexon Children’s Rehabilitation Hospital. “The donation was made to enhance the rehabilitation treatment effect and support disabled children to hav

Ultra-fast 5G wireless network systems are set to gain a solid global presence alongside the rise of revolutionary technologies in the coming years, according to Swedish telecom equipment and services company Ericsson.Short for fifth-generation, 5G is an ultra-fast wireless network system offering around 20 times faster transmission speeds than the existing 4G or Long-Term Evolution networks. This super-fast network boasts extremely low latency -- delays caused when transmitting large amounts of

South Korean mobile game giant Netmarble Games said Tuesday that it has acquired US-based game developer Kabam’s Vancouver studio, the creator of the hit mobile game “Marvel Contest of Champions.”　The deal, which will be handled by Ropes & Gray LLP, is expected to close during the first quarter of 2017, according to Netmarble. The financial terms of the asset sale were undisclosed.Kabam’s studio in Vancouver is best known for developing “Marvel Contest of Champions.” Since its launch in December

South Korean biopharma company SK Chemicals said Sunday that a hemophilia treatment it has co-developed with its partner CSL Ltd. has been approved for sale in Canada, marking another step forward in breaking into overseas markets.Last week, Canada's drug regulator Health Canada granted marketing and sales approval for Afstyla, a biologic drug for hemophilia A, to CSL Behring, a subsidiary of CSL Ltd.Afstyla was originally developed by SK Chemicals and licensed out to Australian biotech firm CSL

South Korean biopharma company Celltrion is on track to commercialize a Rituxan biosimilar for the first time in Europe early next year, marking another major milestone for the drugmaker.The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use adopted a positive recommendation of Celltrion’s Truxima, a biosimilar referencing the blockbuster lymphatic cancer drug Rituxan (rituximab) on Friday.In line with the CMPH’s recommendation, the EMA is expected to officially grant Tru

South Korea’s beauty startup Memebox announced Friday that it has secured another $60 million in funding from nine investors including Goodwater Capital, Altos Ventures and Formation Group.The online beauty retailer said that the new round of investments came as an extension of the funding the firm had raised back in August, which had stood at $66 million.With the new funding, Memebox has secured a total of $160 million from global investors since its foundation in Seoul four years ago.The beaut

SK Biopharmaceuticals, the new drug development unit of South Korea’s SK Group, has taken its first step into the cancer treatment market by entering a new partnership with a cancer research body at a Korean hospital.SK Biopharm and the Samsung Medical Center’s Institute for Refractory Cancer Research signed a joint drug research partnership in Seoul on Thursday, agreeing to co-develop new drugs to treat brain tumors for the next three years. SK Biopharm CEO Cho Dae-sik (right) and President and

A recent ruling by a South Korean lower court that acquitted the founder of Nexon of bribery charges involving a former senior prosecutor is further eroding the major game firm’s public image, which has been plunging since the scandal erupted early this year.　The Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday said that Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju was found not guilty of providing some 953 million won ($808,000) worth of bribes in stocks, cash and spendable goods to former senior prosecutor Jin Kyung-joon

A recent ruling by a South Korean lower court that acquitted the founder of Nexon of bribery charges involving a former senior prosecutor is further eroding the major game firm’s public image, which has been plunging since the scandal erupted early this year.　The Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday said that Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju was found not guilty of providing some 953 million won ($808,000) worth of bribes in stocks, cash and spendable goods to former senior prosecutor Jin Kyung-joon

The share-dumping scandal involving Hanmi Pharmaceutical is nearing closure, with the prosecution charging 17 people Tuesday for insider trading.　The suspects are accused of reaping unlawful gains by taking advantage of undisclosed information regarding a broken licensing deal.　After a monthslong investigation, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office announced that it found 45 offenders involved with the Hanmi case, 17 of whom were indicted.  The Hanmi Pharmaceutical headquarters in sout

The South Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety this week released an English version of the results of its latest approval evaluation of Korea-made biosimilar drugs. The ministry started to offer the English versions in August with the aim of helping the companies expedite approval in other countries.The recent English-language disclosure were of Samsung Bioepis’ two biosimilars for treating rheumatoid arthritis -- Brenzys and Renflexis.Brenzys is a biosimilar referencing Amgen’s top-selling

South Korean game company Netmarble Games released its latest mobile role-playing game “Lineage II: Revolution” via the Google Play and Apple app stores Wednesday.　Netmarble’s new mobile game -- categorized as a “massively multiplayer online role playing game,” or MMORPG -- is based on NCSoft’s original online role-playing game “Lineage II.”　“Lineage II: Revolution,” Netmarble’s biggest mobile release of the year aimed at global success, has been garnering keen attention from users, surpassing m

South Korean telecommunications company KT on Tuesday unveiled its latest preparations for the successful deployment of a pilot 5G network service at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.　　Short for fifth-generation, 5G is an ultra-fast wireless network system offering up to 20 times faster transmission speeds than the existing 4G or Long-Term Evolution networks. The futuristic network is expected to be fully commercialized around the world in 2020.　KT has pledged to run the world’s first-ever 5

To help South Korean startups find new talent and allow job seekers to learn more about the community, Google Campus Seoul hosted a recruiting event at its headquarters here Thursday. Google Campus Seoul, a co-working space for startups operated by the US internet giant, invited 12 startups looking to hire interns, entry-level designers, software developers, project coordinators and marketers.The recruiting program, in its 10th year, was organized by Google Campus Seoul and Korean startup recrui

2ND SEOUL SHAKE SHACK -- US premium burger chain Shake Shack will open its second outlet in Cheongdam-dong of Seoul’s Gangnam district Saturday, according to the brand’s South Korean licensee SPC Group. The outlet, located on Dosan-daero, will open at 11 a.m. (SPC Group)

South Korean biopharmaceutical company BioCND said Monday that it has secured domestic approval to begin phase 1 clinical trials of a biosimilar referencing Roche’s eye treatment Lucentis.　The Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has approved its plans to start phase 1 clinical trials of BCD300, which references Novartis’ Lucentis (ranibizumab), used primarily to treat eye illnesses such as age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.　BioCND said it will begin the first-phase cl

Samsung BioLogics, a contract manufacturer of biologic drugs under the Samsung Group, is facing persisting suspicions that it received preferential treatment in obtaining regulatory approval for a public listing on South Korea’s main stock market.　Despite strong refutation and explanations from Samsung Group’s de facto chief Lee Jae-yong, Samsung BioLogics as well as bourse operator Korea Exchange, the issue will once again become a topic of scrutiny at the next parliamentary hearing slated for