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Tag: telecom

  • Astro seen benefiting if Android box is banned

    Astro seen benefiting if Android box is banned

    Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd is the clear winner if the government moves to ban the sale of Android set-top-boxes (STBs) in the country as this could possibly halt or slow down its declining subscriber base and lift its average revenue per user (ARPU), according to HLIB Research. It was reported that the government has set up a task force to consider banning the sale of Android STBs, mirroring Singapore’s move last month.

    The rapid sale of Android STBs in Malaysia has hampered the development of Pay-TV in the last two to three years, HLIB Research analyst Khairul Azizi Kairudin said in a note.

    He said this is evident by Astro’s declining premium subscribers who opted to shift to Android STBs and other digital platforms (both legal and illegal).

    “In Malaysia, Astro appears to be the most impacted player with the rapid sales of Android STBs as evident by its declining premium subscribers in the past three years. However, we note that Astro has managed to slow down the subscriber loss with NJOI,” he added.

    Nevertheless, he noted that despite the ban on Android STBs, Astro would still face competition from legal streaming platforms such as Netflix.

    While Singapore took three years to review the ban of Android STBs, which includes amending its Copyright Act, Khairul expects a shorter timeframe for Malaysia as media companies have mooted the idea in the past two years due to the disruptive impact.

    “We believe the government has started the discussions on the ban by setting up a task force to review the current law,” he said.

    Additionally, he said HLIB Research views Telekom Malaysia’s (TM) recent announcement that their latest Unifi package would not be bundled with Unifi TV subscription due to changing consumer trends as a positive for Astro as this could assist the latter to expand their subscriber base.

    Astro controlled 77% market share of Pay-TV market in Malaysia and the rest is controlled by TM through Unifi TV.

    Khairul said should the ban on Android STBs material, it would be a positive catalyst for the lacklustre media sector (especially for Astro) which is being hampered by the digital disruption.

    “For now, we maintain our ‘underweight’ rating on the media sector. Following the recent surge in Astro share price, we downgrade Astro from ‘buy’ to ‘hold’ with an unchanged target price of RM1.70.

    “Nevertheless, Astro’s earning prospect remain intact on the back of its stable advertising expenditure outlook and coupled with generous dividend payment of 5% yield,” he added.

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  • Axiata buys 80% stake in Laos firm

    Axiata buys 80% stake in Laos firm

    Axiata Group Bhd’s 63%-owned subsidiary edotco Investments (Labuan) Ltd (edotco Labuan) is acquiring an 80% stake in Laos’s Mekong Tower Company Ltd (MTCL) for LAK12.8 billion (RM6.08 million) cash. Axiata said in a filing with the stock exchange that edotco Labuan had entered into a share subscription agreement (SSA) with Viphet Sihachakr (VS) and MTCL for the purchase.

    The SSA is subject to, amongst other, procurement of operating licence or other form of authorisation from the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications of the Government of Laos to MTCL for the provision of infrastructure solutions for telecommunications and network operators in Laos; registration of MTCL with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of the Government of Laos; and procurement by VS of viable business including relevant concessions and/or incentives in Laos.

    Unless waived by the parties, the conditions must be satisfied not later than six months from the date of the SSA.

    “The proposed subscription provides opportunities for edotco group to expand into a new market and grow organically via build-to-suits and inorganically with sizeable sale-and-leaseback prospects,“ Axiata said.

    The Laos tower market is expected to undergo intense growth in tandem with a national drive towards 4G adoption, with an estimated demand of no less than 5,000 towers over the next three years, underscoring the need for an independent tower player to meet the requisite capital expenditure and cost optimisation burdens incumbent on local mobile network operators.

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  • KT CEO talks 5G at World Economic Forum

    KT CEO talks 5G at World Economic Forum

    The head of KT, the country’s leading telecommunications provider, outlined the importance of 5G networks in driving innovation at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week. KT CEO Hwang Chang-gyu was invited to a meeting of the International Business Council, a community of 100 select highly influential executives around the globe, which was held on the forum’s sidelines.

    Hwang said the adoption of the upcoming network system will play an integral role in processing autonomous driving vehicles and telemedicine systems.

    5G refers to the fifth-generation mobile network that will succeed the current 4G network, which has been prevalent for about seven years. The network is expected to be commercialized in the first quarter of this year, according to KT.

    The global elite meeting also acted as a get-together for the world’s renowned CEOs and academics. KT said Hwang spoke with Apple’s Tim Cook, adding that the Apple CEO pledged to visit Korea or invite Hwang to the United States to learn more about the 5G network. Rafael Reif, the president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), said he expected Hwang will lecture about 5G at the campus.

    The KT CEO also promised to strengthen cooperation with Japan’s telecom NTT Docomo to run 5G during the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.

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  • Viettel sole Vietnamese brand in global 500 listing

    Viettel sole Vietnamese brand in global 500 listing

    Military-run telecom giant Viettel is the only Vietnamese firm in the list of 500 most valuable brands in the world. Valued at $4.32 billion, Viettel’s brand was ranked 478th on the list of 500 most valuable brands in the world for 2019, Brand Finance, a leading global brand valuation consultant, announced at the ongoing World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

    This is the first time a Vietnamese brand has been named in this list.

    Accordingly, Viettel’s brand value in 2019 has increased 35.8 percent year over 2018. The telecom giant’s high brand valuation was largely due to its presence and contribution in 10 foreign markets, suggesting the company was internationally competitive.

    2018 was a successful year for Viettel in  foreign telecommunication sectors, with service revenue growing by 20 percent, mobile subscribers base growing by 70 percent and net cash flow from international operations by $240 million, 3 percent higher compared to 2017.

    Brand Finance’s Global 500 list ranks the most valuable brands in the world covering all business fields including telecommunications, technology, automotive, oil and gas. Some big names in the list include Amazon, Apple, Google, Mercedes-Benz, Shell and Telstra.

    “Every year Brand Finance conducts an assessment of about 5,000 global brands across 40 different areas on various criteria such as revenue, brand strength, and financial health,” said David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance.

    Out of a total 5,000 global businesses surveyed, there were 500 Southeast Asian businesses, of which only 8 brands made it to the Global 500 list. The listed brands were in three categories: telecommunications, oil and gas, banking.

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  • Facebook strikes deal with SK to pay data fees

    Facebook strikes deal with SK to pay data fees

    Facebook reportedly finally agreed to pay data traffic fees to SK Broadband after two years of negotiations. According to local media reports Sunday, the social media giant and internet provider agreed to a two-year network usage deal to set up a cache server for temporary data storage and provide fast Facebook access to SK Broadband users. While the two companies did not confirm the exact sum, Facebook will reportedly pay more than what it previously proposed during negotiations.

    SK Broadband is not the first internet provider that Facebook will be paying in the country. In 2015, it signed a contract with KT to open a cache server. The two companies are currently working on renewing the contract after it expired last July.

    The new deal with SK Broadband comes after Facebook faced negative press for inconveniencing users while trying to avoid paying network fees to SK Broadband and LG U+.

    In late 2016 and early 2017, the social media giant re-routed non-KT users to its server in Hong Kong when they tried to connect to the platform, slowing down access considerably. The Korea Communications Commission charged the company 396 million won ($353,900) in fines and ordered it to change its practices.

    Following the agreement with SK Broadband, the social media giant is expected to open up a cache server with the internet provider.

    The company is also reported to be working with LG U+ on a similar deal.

    The recent deal highlights the question of whether other foreign IT giants will follow suit and pay data traffic fees to Korea’s network providers.

    Many Korean businesses have complained that current laws and practices hurt domestic firms. Naver and Kakao, for example, pay around 70 billion won and 30 billion won every year to Korea’s three network providers to compensate for their high traffic volume, while Google and Netflix – which are thought to be responsible for half of Korea’s data traffic together with Facebook – pay none.

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  • Viettel gets one-year 5G trial license

    Viettel gets one-year 5G trial license

    Vietnam’s largest telecommunications company Viettel has received a license to trial its 5G services. The trial is licensed for a period of one year until January 21 next year. Viettel is the first company in Vietnam to receive this license. The military-owned company is allowed to trial the sevices in Hanoi and HCMC at not more than 73 locations and without charging for the services.

    The company had earmarked $40 million for the development of its own 5G chipset, but was also considering using technology from Ericsson and Nokia, its president and CEO Le Dang Dung said.

    Viettel has around 60 million subscribers in Vietnam and over 30 million more in 10 other countries, predominantly in Asia and Africa.

    Speaking at a seminar on telecoms innovations at the end of 2018, Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung had expressed plans to introduce 5G by 2020, which would make Vietnam one of the first countries to deploy this technology.

    5G is the latest generation in of mobile Internet connectivity, and should offer much faster speeds and more reliable connections on smartphones and other devices compared to the current 3G and 4G technologies.

  • Singapore telco M1’s suitors say they won’t raise offer price

    Singapore telco M1’s suitors say they won’t raise offer price

    Singapore conglomerate Keppel Corp and Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) said they will not raise their offer price to gain majority control of mobile operator M1 Ltd, a move that could put pressure on Axiata Group, M1’s single largest shareholder. Keppel and SPH, which together control 34.3% of Singapore’s smallest mobile operator, said in September they would offer S$2.06 (RM6.25) per share for majority ownership of M1 in a bid to support its falling share price and restructure the firm to better compete against sector rivals.

    “The offeror wishes to announce that it does not intend to increase the offer price of S$2.06 in cash per offer share under any circumstances whatsoever,” Keppel and SPH said in a regulatory announcement issued by their jointly-owned holding company. The closing date was extended to Feb 18 from Feb 4. M1 has a total market value of S$1.92 billion.

    Malaysia’s Axiata, which holds a 28.3% stake in M1, said in September the offer should reflect the accurate future value of M1, inclusive of an acceptable control premium and consistent with market standards.

    Axiata said at the time it was working with an adviser and was reviewing its options. As quoted, Axiata viewed the offer price as “inadequate”.

    In response to a query, Axiata said it would not comment on a statement. “Axiata will make any necessary announcements as required and in due time,” it said.

    Since the September announcement, M1’s shares have rallied 26% to trade at S$2.05 this week but are little changed over the past two years and have lost 49% from a record high of S$3.99 in early 2015.

    Mobile telecoms competition is heating up in Singapore, with Australia’s TPG Telecom planning to launch a new service after winning a licence to become the city-state’s fourth telecom operator. Analysts consider M1 to be the most vulnerable to new competition.

    In July 2017, Axiata, Keppel and SPH had considered, and then called off a strategic review of their M1 shareholding, which sources said was due to a lower-than-expected offer from external parties.

  • Seoul, SKT to add 5G to transport system

    Seoul, SKT to add 5G to transport system

    Sensors on roads will be able to alert cars when people are jaywalking and bus stops will tell buses to slow down in crowded areas when Seoul’s 5G infrastructure is ready, the city’s government and SK Telecom said in a joint statement Thursday. The Seoul Metropolitan Government and SK Telecom have teamed up on an initiative called the Cooperative-Intelligent Transport System, an upgrade of the current transportation system in Seoul. The pilot program will run until the end of 2020 with a budget of roughly 25.4 billion won ($22.6 million).

    Seoul already has a digitized public transportation system with signboards at bus stops telling passengers when the next bus is coming and whether it is crowded, and T-Money cards that enable people to transfer between various means of public transportation with little additional cost. The city aims to use 5G to make that transport system even safer.

    SK Telecom will supply 2,000 5G devices for buses, taxis and traffic signal controllers so they can connect with the 5G network. The mobile carrier said the devices will be co-developed with Samsung Electronics.

    Buses and taxis installed with 5G will constantly share data with bus stops, traffic lights and other traffic infrastructure. SK Telecom and the Seoul government will look for dangerous situations by analyzing the shared data to prevent accidents. As SK Telecom operates the country’s largest navigation app – T Map – the carrier said it will send out warnings through the app to reach the largest number of drivers possible.

    SK Telecom said there are about 30 safety services the 5G-based transportation system can offer.

    Roads installed with 5G sensors can detect jaywalkers, the mobile carrier said. While cars may have difficulty spotting people in the dark or during bad weather, 5G-connected sensors will alert nearby cars and prevent accidents. In 2017, 9,590 accidents were caused by jaywalkers, the largest cause of road accidents for pedestrians, according to data from the Korea Road Traffic Authority.

    The country’s largest telecom company also said 5G connectivity between cars can prevent secondary accidents by sending warning messages to following cars when an accidents occur in areas with poor visibility, such as around a corner or a bend in the road.

    As well as partnering on safety services, Seoul and SK Telecom are also preparing to jointly establish an autonomous driving test-bed in Sangam-dong, western Seoul, by the first half of this year. A self-driving vehicle will run back and forth between Digital Media City Station and buildings in the area. The SK Telecom-operated autonomous vehicle will begin running in the area from June at the earliest.

    “The Cooperative-Intelligent Transport System project is a futuristic business that combines state-of-the-art digital technologies, like 5G, autonomous driving, artificial intelligence (AI) and the cloud,” said Ryu Young-sang, an executive vice president of SK Telecom. “We hope to offer a range of traffic safety data to Seoul citizens using 5G and reduce traffic accidents.”

  • Vietnam wants to excel in IT, telecom

    Vietnam wants to excel in IT, telecom

    Vietnam, which is in a lowly 108th place in the International Telecommunication Union’s ICT Development Index, wants to improve its status. Speaking at a Ministry of Information and Communications (MoIC) conference Tuesday, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc emphasized the need for the country to improve its ranking in ICT, one of country’s strengths alongside agriculture and service.

    MoIC Minister Nguyen Manh Hung said the country must use the International Telecommunication Union’s rankings as a guideline and strive to improve to no lower than 50th latest by 2022.

    He stressed that to take the lead in the digital revolution, the country needs to popularize smartphones by licensing 4G and testing 5G technologies to increase capacity, data usage per user and the quality of the mobile network.

    “Vietnam must be on the same line with the world in new technologies. We will not be eight and 10 years behind like we were with 3G and 4G.”

    According to the minister, Vietnam’s development in telecommunications must remain sustainable by shifting resources to explore new markets once the phone market saturates instead of continuing to compete unhealthily on old markets.

    “Mobile money,” which the ministry is trialing now, allows users to transfer money and make purchases through their telecom accounts, and would help bring e-payment to everyone in the country and stimulate economic growth, he said.

    Digital transformation, e-governance and smart cities would be the big stories of 2019, he said.

    “National digital transformation, digital economy and digital society would be the overarching story for decades to come. We need to develop strategies and projects in 2019 to clarify what must be done for each field in the digital economy and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

    Speaking about cyber security and safety, he said the Internet, on which the country’s prosperity depends, is itself an unsafe environment.

    “In 2019 there will be no incidents of government agencies’ websites being hacked and having information stolen. Vietnam must become ASEAN’s center for cybersecurity.”

    Vietnam has an opportunity to become one of the world’s major manufacturers of electronic and telecom equipment, he said.

    Globally there are only four major telecom infrastructure and equipment manufacturers — Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei and ZTE – and while China’s Huawei and ZTE enjoy a market share of 60 percent, they are encountering difficulties with the U.S., he pointed out.

    “Vietnam is currently capable of manufacturing 70 percent of telecom equipment [used globally]. With effort, we could become the fourth nation in the world capable of manufacturing and exporting all types of telecom equipment. This must be achieved by 2019-2020.”

    “Vietnamese network operators must use Vietnamese-made equipment if the price and quality are similar.”

    The ministry has set a target of  20-30 percent of operators’ revenues coming from digital content this year instead of the current 6-8 percent, saying the digital content industry is capable of expanding by three or four times to achieve revenues of $3-4 billion.

    “The key to the digital content industry’s growth is that policies must promote it,” said the minister.

  • Telenor Pakistan hosts “The future of Machine Leaning & Artificial Intelligence”

    Telenor Pakistan hosts “The future of Machine Leaning & Artificial Intelligence”

    Stephen Brobst, CTO of Teradata, conducted an enlightening session on the future of Machine Learning (ML) &Artificial Intelligence (AI) at Telenor Pakistan headquarters ‘345’ in Islamabad. The session was attended by Telenor Pakistan employees and executives from across industries including Irfan Wahab Khan, CEO Telenor Pakistan and President OICCI, Haroon Bhatti, Chief Business Officer (CBO) at Telenor Pakistan, BadarKhushnood, Cofounder & VP at Bramerz, QazafiQayyum, Country Manager Teradata, Khimde Ando, CEO Mitsubishi Corporation, Brig. Tahir Mehmood, Director ISPR, AVM Faaiz Amir, Vice Chancellor Air University, Barkaan Saeed, Ex-Chairman PASHA and Retd. Brig. Saleem Ahmed Moeen, CEO SecureTech.

    The participants learned about the future of artificial intelligence, the role of emerging technologies, differences between deep and shallow learning and their application techniques, and the opportunities of using advanced analytics to create high-value outcomes.

    “We have entered a new era of analytics with machine learning and artificial intelligence algorithms beginning to deliver on the long-promised advancement into self-learning systems,” Brobst told the audience. “These approaches allow us to solve previously intractable problems with completely new attack plans.  The appetite of deep learning algorithms for vast amounts of data and the ability to derive intelligence from diverse sets of noisy data allows us to go far beyond previous capabilities in what we used to call advanced analytics,” he added.

    Brobstinformed that in order be successful with the use of new technologieswe need to fully understand their capabilities and limitations. He also stressed the need to develop new skill sets in order to harness the power of deep learning to create business value in an enterprise.

    “In our times of Siri, Alexa, and Google, Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence are not a part of science fiction anymore; they are our reality,” remarked Irfan Wahab Khan. “For tech companies like Telenor and Terada, the real charm of AI and ML technologies is their ability to recognize patterns and synthesize large amounts of data. Telenor is not only harnessing the strength of AI and Advance Analytics for its own commercial use but is also enabling other organizations to benefit from the technology by offering incisive Market Research insights and ability to run targeted campaigns on its diverse Advertising  assets. The fact that these technologies get smarter with time as increased amounts of data is fed to them makes them acornerstone for all future technologies,” he added.

    Impressive progress is being made in ML & AI technologies globally. From self-driving and learning cars to flying drones circling the skies, the technological advancements of today could already be perceived as something out of a futuristic novel. Gartner, the world’s leading research and advisory company,also predicts that by 2020, AI will become one of the top five investment priorities for at least 30 percent of Chief Information Officers. Being the country’s technology leader, Telenor Pakistan is keeping its people abreast of the latest technological developments to realize its ambition of digitally empowering Pakistan.

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  • Korea’s KT 5G bus hits the road

    Korea’s KT 5G bus hits the road

    Are you curious about all the hype over 5G? A ride on a 5G-powered bus may answer some questions. Mobile carrier KT announced Tuesday that people can sign up for free rides on its 5G bus. The bus will be connected to its ultra-fast 5G wireless network and will demonstrate devices that can be used to enjoy new media services like KT’s GiGA Live TV. GiGA Live is a head-mounted display – thick goggles with a screen embedded inside. GiGA Live supports virtual reality (VR) media services, including live sports broadcasts, as well as 360-degree films.

    VR and augmented reality (AR) are commonly cited as the technologies that have the most to benefit from 5G network. Because 5G promises up to 20 times faster speeds than LTE, it can transfer large volumes of data quickly in real-time, which is integral to the proper operation of VR and AR services.

    Those who want to take 30-minute sojourns on the 5G bus can apply online at www.kt5Gbus.com. The bus will run in the Gwanghwamun area from Jan. 15 to 24, and Gangnam Station from Jan. 25 to Feb. 2. Rides will be offered five times a day, excluding Sundays and Mondays.

    “5G network makes it possible to transfer huge volumes of information safely and in real-time,” said Park Hyun-jin, head of KT’s 5G business. “We will continue to offer innovative 5G services that can provide new experiences and value to consumers.”

    Earlier this month, KT added 5G-capabilities to its barista robot B;eat in Samsung Life Insurance’s Seocho District office. The robot, which looks like an advanced vending machine, can now recognize customers’ presence and send real-time footage of orders to human managers.

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  • Vietnam’s Viettel seeks to double Myanmar customer base: CEO

    Vietnam’s Viettel seeks to double Myanmar customer base: CEO

    Vietnam’s largest telecommunication company, Viettel, is seeking to double its five million subscribers in Myanmar by the end of the year. Viettel, whose $1.22 billion unit Viettel Global Investment is trading on the Unlisted Public Company Market, has also shown interest in investing in North Korea and Cuba. “The growth seen in Myanmar is rare in the telecom market,” Viettel’s president and chief executive officer Le Dang Dung said on Friday. “We still have room to grow there.”

    Myanmar, where Viettel and its local partners launched a $1.5 billion 4G network in June last year has emerged as one of the most promising markets for the company, Dung said.

    The Mytel network, jointly developed by Myanmar National Holding Public Ltd and Star High Public Co Ltd, has amassed around five million subscribers, a figure which Dung said he expects to double by the end of this year.

    Viettel is also in talks to buy stakes in existing telecommunication firms in Malaysia and Indonesia, Dung said, without giving further details due to the sensitivity of the deals.

    The company will be the first to develop a 5G network in Vietnam, Dung said, in anticipation of rapid development of data services.

    He said Viettel had earmarked $40 million for the development of its own 5G chipset, but was also considering using technology from Ericsson and Nokia.

    The military-run firm, formally known as Viettel Group, has around 60 million subscribers in Vietnam and over 30 million users across 10 other countries – predominantly in Asia and Africa.

    The company is also in talks to buy a 20 percent stake in a European mobile carrier, Dung said, without elaborating.

    Dung said Viettel plans to stop expanding its investment in the African market, however, where the company has struggled to make a profit due to poor economic growth.

    Closer to home, Viettel is looking to invest in North Korea, said Dung, where Koryolink – a joint venture between the North Korean state and Egypt’s Orascom Investment Holdings – has amassed millions of subscribers since its 2008 launch.

    “We first sought permission from North Korea to build a mobile network there in 2010,” he said. “But we’re still waiting for sanctions to be lifted and for the country to open its market to foreign investors.”

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  • LG U+ CEO says Huawei gear is not a risk

    LG U+ CEO says Huawei gear is not a risk

    LG U+ CEO and Vice Chairman Ha Hyun-hwoi has made it clear that the carrier does not think there are any security threats related to its use of Huawei equipment in its 5G infrastructure. Ha made the statement during a year-end press briefing on Wednesday in Yongsan District, central Seoul, rebuffing claims by some lawmakers that there is a risk of security leaks through the use of the Chinese tech giant’s equipment in the network. LG U+ currently partners with Huawei as well as Samsung Electronics, Ericsson and Nokia for its 5G infrastructure.

    According to Ha, the Chinese IT company has already applied for security certification of its 5G network equipment from an international certifying body in Spain. The CEO added the public will be able to see how secure the equipment is once the evaluations are complete next year.

    “Security concerns apply to every equipment vendor we partner with, not only Huawei, and we need to thoroughly verify all the equipment [we use] is secure,” Ha said. “There are roughly 170 countries that are already using Huawei’s network equipment, and there hasn’t been any security problems reported so far.”

    Locally, Huawei has set up equipment that abides by over 70 security guidelines set by the Korea Internet & Security Agency, according to LG U+.

    The main reason for the carrier taking the risk of using the controversial equipment is because 5G infrastructure needs to be built in conjunction with the existing network equipment for 4G long term evolution (LTE), some of which LG U+ also bought from Huawei. Ha said price, technological competitiveness and the ability to deliver the equipment in a timely manner were also considered when choosing the vendor.

    LG U+ has built 5,500 base stations to service the next-generation 5G network as of Wednesday, while its local competitors have reportedly established less than 1,000 5G base stations.

    On why the mobile carrier is rushing to establish its 5G infrastructure, Ha said, “It is important to have a head start to have a competitive edge in [5G] services considering the quality tests we need to go through before March [when the high-speed network is commercialized for smartphones].”

    Ha said the company invested roughly 4 trillion won ($3.6 billion) to set up its 5G infrastructure, including at 5G spectrum auctions.

    The company said it hopes to take up a larger share of the market, which is dominated by SK Telecom, with 50 percent, and KT, with 30 percent.

    “In July 2011, when we first began the LTE service, our local market share was 17.7 percent, but the share increased to 21.2 percent over time as of the end of October,” LG U+ said in statement. “We think next year could be the best time to shake up the competing structure.”

    The carrier is preparing a 5G-based smart factory service with its affiliates LG Electronics and IT service company LG CNS, targeting enterprise customers. For individual customers, LG U+ is focusing on augmented reality and virtual reality content that can offer an immersive experience of watching sports games and K-pop concerts at home.

    The CEO also commented on speculations that the carrier will acquire paid TV service operator CJ Hello. Ha said it has opened up its options to cable TV operators other than CJ Hello and plans to finalize the deal within the first half of next year. Industry sources, however, still say negotiations between the two parties have nearly come to a close and final results are likely to come out around March.

  • Huawei’s woes in U.S. give pause to Korea, too

    Huawei’s woes in U.S. give pause to Korea, too

    The arrest of Huawei’s Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou in Canada has triggered alarms in the Korean telecommunications industry, especially after LG U+ moved onto a fifth-generation (5G) network this month that uses Huawei network devices.

    The Chinese telecommunications giant has maintained a sizeable influence since it first entered the Korean market in 2002. While it was originally focused on the cable infrastructure business, Huawei moved on to offering wireless telecommunications devices in 2007 as local telecommunications companies introduced third-generation wide-band code-division multiple access services.

    In 2013, Huawei received orders for fourth-generation 4G long-term evolution (LTE) wireless base stations from LG U+ for services in Seoul, Incheon, and areas in Gyeonggi and Gangwon.

    The 5G equipment market in Korea is estimated to be worth 10 trillion won ($8.89 billion).

    While Huawei is a leading supplier to the telecommunication industry, concerns about the security of its devices has held the company back. Only LG U+ decided to use Huawei equipment for 5G. Huawei has claimed that it had no such security problems in the 170 countries that it operates in and would follow inspection requests by the Korean government.

    LG U+ signed a deal with Huawei to introduce around 30,000 base stations in the Seoul, Incheon, and the Gyeonggi and Gangwon regions by next March. The deal is reportedly worth around 300 billion won, not including maintenance fees.

    The decision by Korea’s smallest telecommunications company made business sense as it used Huawei equipment for its 4G network.

    Huawei’s equipment, however, will not be installed in areas occupied by United States Forces Korea (USFK) such as in Pyeongtaek, Dongducheon, Yongin in Gyeonggi. The U.S. government has requested that Huawei equipment not be used out of concerns about a Chinese cyberattack. USFK has been suspicious about Huawei equipment. When LG U+ chose Huawei equipment for its 4G network, around 10,000 USFK soldiers switched carriers.

    The current situation has left LG U+ in a difficult position. Its deal with Huawei is already inked, and the 5G service works in sync with the existing 4G system, so it is impossible for the company to simply not use Huawei equipment.

    The recent banning of Huawei equipment by Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Japan, along with growing worries in Korea, places more pressure on the telecommunications unit.

    A senior LG U+ official expressed frustration at the current situation and the Korean government’s inaction.

    “Our government is just trying to not upset either China or the United States,” said the official. “Shouldn’t the government come forward and clear things up?”

    Meanwhile, the government maintains its stance that the selection of telecommunications equipment is an issue for companies to decide.

    “Inspecting security is the responsibility of the business operator. It is not appropriate for the government to take part in an area that a company should make a decision on,” said Park Jun-guk, an official at the Cyber Security Industry Bureau in the Ministry of Science and ICT.

    “[We] will, however, strengthen security inspections in the form of a technology advisory conference.”

    While 5G has stirred controversy, Huawei has an even stronger presence in the country with its cable and optical transmission equipment businesses. In the cable business, all three telecommunications companies, SK Telecom, KT and LG U+, are customers of Huawei.

    Huawei has also won orders from Koscom, a state-run financial IT solution company, and from electric utility Kepco.

    Last month, the Chinese company won an order with KT to connect the sales network of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation and the National Livestock Cooperatives Federation worth around 120 billion won.

    According to market researcher IHS Markit, Huawei is the biggest global telecommunications equipment maker, with a market share of 22 percent. While Samsung Electronics holds a strong position in the Korean market, a 45 percent market share, it commands a paltry 4 percent share of the global market.

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  • For first few years, Koreans will be biggest users of 5G

    For first few years, Koreans will be biggest users of 5G

    Korea is forecasted to have the highest proportion of fifth-generation (5G) smartphone usage in the world over the next couple of years, a market tracker said on Sunday. According to Strategy Analytics’ Service Provider Group, the adoption rate of 5G smartphones in Korea is expected to reach 5.5 percent in 2019 and 10.9 percent in 2020, which will be the highest level among major global nations.

    The estimate is based on the fact that Korea is to commercialize 5G services next March, making it the first country in the world to do so, with tech giant Samsung Electronics planning to release a model featuring the high-end technology, the market tracker said.

    By 2020, 5G will account for 4.7 percent of total market share in the United States, 5.2 percent in Japan and 2.8 percent in China, Strategy Analytics said, adding that its penetration rate would increase after that date in line with the broader establishment of the network.

    In 2021, the adoption rate of 5G smartphones is expected to begin to surge in major countries, with numbers hitting 27 percent in the United States, followed by 21.3 percent in South Korea, 19.7 percent in Japan and 8.5 percent in China.

    “The 5G standard will become the mainstream of the global network industry in years to come,” said an industry insider.

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