The Telecommunications Revolution in Korea

I wrote this book in the early 1990s and was pleased to have it published by Oxford University Press. I was further pleased to see that many libraries around the world purchased the book, so that it became more or less universally available to scholars and professionals interested in Korea's amazing transformation that began in the 1980s. Today, I am delighted to know that anyone in the world with an internet connection can read the book. Google is still working on about a dozen pages that somehow were missed in the scanning process. However, far more important than that is that the book is now available via the web in a searchable format. The easiest place to read The Telecommunications Revolution in Korea is on my personal website, at the following URL: http://www.jamesflarson.com/tr-in-korea-main.html Take a look, and explore the book. As author, I myself appreciate what this power to search brings. Indeed, electronic search, via Google, is the revolutionary aspect of Google Books. From now on, no student or teacher at any level need consult the old, limited library databases. Welcome to the 21st century! I'll do another post when my other books are up and running.

Korea's Image Problem

A headline in the Joongang Daily caught my attention: "Korea Aiming to Refine Image Abroad." The article which followed the headline dealt with efforts of the Lee Myung Bak administration to improve the nation's brand image in the world. President Lee has convened a Presidential Council on National Branding. Lee Chan-buom, now the Director General of Korea's Presidential Council on National Branding, noted the adverse impact on Korea's image of news media coverage of the anti-US beef import candlelight vigils in early 2008. Those demonstrations were visually colorful, prolonged and mysterious to most western and international television viewers and internet users. Rightly or wrongly so, they created an image that South Korea is unstable, flighty and tends toward anti-Americanism. The article notes that nation-branding may be a difficult task in a country that has seen numerous street protests, corruption and frequent confrontation with its neighbor, North Korea. I'll say!
I've long been interested in the effects of mainstream media coverage, especially television, on public opinion and U.S. foreign policy toward other countries. (see, for example, my article on "Quiet Diplomacy in a Television Era Use the link and you can read the full text, PDF.). That was back in 1990. However, despite the explosive growth of the internet, (see my monograph, The Internet and Foreign Policy) the pattern continues. Korea's new President Council on National Branding will have to deal with television and the internet, most especially since convergence means that television (IPTV) is now part of the internet. In this new media environment, coverage by CNN, BBC World or The New York Times are a fact of life. Anti-beef import protests, stories about the sexual adventures of North Korea's Kim Jong-Il, and almost any topic, will be fair game for the world's media. The internet, television and the media (roughly in that order) are today significant determinants of corporate, national and even individual images. In this context, how should Korea proceed to improve its national image?
I have a couple of thoughts. First, news coverage of North Korea, and news coverage of demonstrations in South Korea are not going to go away. Furthermore, they are not under the control of the South Korean government. The only real solution to the problem that North Korea poses for South Korea's national image is to make real progress toward reunification, and the sooner the better. Second, any efforts to brand Korea should stay away from quick-fix advertising gimmicks like "Korea Sparkling" or even "Dynamic Korea" and should build from long-standing realities. For example, Hangul is the Korean alphabet and that is not likely to change. Kimchi is eaten by Koreans and that, too, is unlikely to change anytime soon. It is an interesting challenge. I don't have any further insights at the moment, but will likely comment in future posts.

Read my book....except for pp. 3-13 for the time being

Thanks to BJ for noting that pages 3-13 are still missing from Google's scan of The Telecommunications Revolution in Korea.  The Google Book staff are working on this.  Also, the book should be searchable via Google Book Search within a couple of weeks.

Read my book, The Telecommunications Revolution in Korea, online

I'm delighted to inform you that Google has completed scanning my book The Telecommunications Revolution in Korea, New York: Oxford University Press, 1995 and you may now read it in its entirety on Google Books. It may take Google a while longer to get it placed into the Google Books index, but for now, just use this hyperlink.

The book focuses largely on developments in the 1980s and very early 1990s. Enjoy the reading and please send me any questions or comments you might have on what I wrote such a long, long time ago.

There will be more where this came from as I plan to place as many of my books as possible on the internet, including some co-authored ones.

A Modest Mobile Communication Proposal for Korea

Today the Joongang Daily has an interesting article providing more background on why KT and SKT are delaying their decision on whether to import or not import the Apple iPhone.  I suggest that both companies, along with Samsung and LG Electronics, accept some basic realities and move forward.  Why not do the following:

• Immediately begin offering full internet access via existing 3G networks, with reasonable monthly charges for unlimited data (internet browsing) use.  Say in the range of 30,000 to 40,000 won.
• Equip most phone models, by default with WiFi capability, and as many as possible with WiBro.
• If Apple is driving too hard a bargain, come out with some snazzy Android phones.  This, even more than the iPhone, probably represents the future of mobile communication.  Furthermore, since it is open source, it offers far greater future rewards for Korean companies.
• Offer an easy toggle to English and other major international languages in your software for ALL future phones that you release.  Although foreigners and tourists may constitute a niche market, it is an important niche.

Given the huge stake that LG and Samsung, along with KT and SKT have in the global marketplace, I'm amazed that some of these things haven't already been done.  The basic reason for the popularity of the iPhone is that people realize they can now take the internet with them, wherever they go, 24/7.  Sooner or later, consumers in Korea will demand the same level of service currently provided in other countries.

Korea Times: "Closed Mobile Market Frustrates Consumers"

The headline of this article in the Korea Times says it all.  There has been a lot of local press coverage about the Apple iPhone (not yet available in Korea) and Android Phones (being launched by Samsung and LG in Europe and not yet available in Korea).  This latest article summarizes many of the points I've made in earlier posts.  I'd add the following considerations just to sharpen the point.

• it is becoming more than a little embarrassing for South Korea, a nation that touts its high levels of broadband internet access to actually deprive consumers here of mobile broadband access.  (I subscribe to SK Telecom's service but will NEVER use NATE.  Not only is Nate expensive, it doesn't even provide unfettered access to the internet! I'd like access to the internet via my handset.)
• Instead of protecting old-fashioned, Korean language only services, Korea should open up the mobile internet market.  Force Samsung, LG, KT and SK Telecom to compete here with the best the world has to offer.  This competition, over the long run, can only strengthen Korea's position in the global market.
• Now that handsets basically function like hand-held computers, it is natural that people want to use them as such.  This means that Korean corporations need to rapidly shift their focus to the production of software and content that young people today and future generations will want to use.  The handsets, like the PCs of old, will become commodities.  

Qualcomm Fined $208 Million

According to the Korea Times, the Korea Fair Trade Commission, this nation's anti-trust watchdog, has fined the U.S.-based company Qualcomm a record amount of $208 million for unfair business practices.  The Commisson said that the U.S. chipmaker had used its market dominance to maintain a virtual monopoly on CDMA-based phone chips.  Qualcomm owns critical key patents for CDMA, reaping huge profits from Samsung and LG Electronics.
What the Korea Times article neglects to mention is that Korea, back in the 1990s became the first nation in the world to commercialize CDMA technology.  This was accomplished through a partnership of Qualcomm and Korea's Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI).  As a result of the successful commercialization of CDMA in Korea, and its adoption by mobile service providers in the U.S. and other parts of the world, Korea's electronics companies began benefitting hugely from the export of CDMA handsets and mobile base stations.  As mobile telephony worldwide is transformed into mobile computing and internet access via the iPhone, Android phones and competitors, the latest versions of CDMA are likely to be even more important.  There is much more to say on this topic, but I'll conclude for now with one comment.  A lot of money is at stake here.    How much is Qualcomm entitled to and for how long for its intellectual property?  Comments are welcome.

Green PC Bangs (Internet Cafes) Coming!

It had to happen. As reported in the local media, including the Korea Times, the PC Bang phenomenon has converged with green IT and South Korea's internet cafes will be going green. It was an idea whose time had come. The Ministry of Knowledge Economy is looking to spend about $33 million on power-efficient internet data centers. Within this, it plans for "green" PC rooms. By eliminating the individual PCs from a PC Bang and connecting all of the LCD displays and keyboards to a single server, substantial power savings can be realized. For example, a PC Bang with 50 computers that presently utilizes 54.7 megawatts of electricity per year could reduce its annual power bill by $4,300. The complementary plan for low-power internet data centers focuses on lowering the power requirements of these centers, which are the backbone of "cloud computing."

KCC Chief Ambivalent About WiBro

A very interesting piece in The Korea Times today about WiBro versus LTE.  WiBro, or "wireless broadband" is a locally developed variant of Mobile Wimax.  It was developed jointly with Intel and grows out of WiFi, representing the computer industry's claim to 4G mobile status.  LTE, on the other hand, is an outgrowth of W-CDMA technology and is backed by wireless companies, including Ericsson.
According to the article, some experts suggest that LTE will eventually garner 70 percent of the global market for 4G mobile services.  This despite the fact that it isn't even in the marketplace yet.  It seems to me that the real questions are (1) who will get WiBro or LTE-equipped notebooks, netbooks, handsets and modems into the marketplace first AND (2) how much consumers will value the additional speed provided by a WiBro-equipped device.
WiBro works and it appears to work just fine.   We won't know the outcome of this for another year or two, but I'd expect something more like a 60-40 or even 50-50 split of the global market between LTE and WiBRO.