Tuesday, September 15, 2009

More on the iPhone's Conspicuous Absence from the Korean Market

The Korea Times and other media reporting today that the long-delayed arrival of Apple's iPhone in the Korean market is being mulled over by the government.   The big hangup seems to be the current regulations governing location-based services in South Korea.
I would only point out that the delayed arrival of the iPhone, Android-based phones and other competitors here is, in a broad sense, detrimental to the health and future growth of Korea's mobile communications market.  The failure thus far of the major service providers to move in this direction is one reason that WiBro services are so slow to take off here. One cannot help but surmise that, once people in Korea get a taste of iPhone and Android applications, they will also demand greater speed, and that is precisely what future WiBro equipped devices will provide.
Today's news makes it appear unlikely that Korea will see an iPhone this year, but that is only my speculation.

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