Mobile in Korea

Currently, there are three mobile operators in Korea, SK Telecom, KT and LG Telecom. A new mobile operator will launch their mobile service in July of next year. KMI (Korea Mobile Internet) submitted the application for providing their own service to the Korean Communications Commission on 11th June.

   SK Telecom relased WiBro(Mobile WiMAX) Smartphone (SCH-M830) last week. The smartphone is WCDMA & WiBro dual device. WCDMA supports voice & data service and WiBro does data service. Because the coverage of WiBro is limited in Seoul and satelite cities, WCDMA help WiBro to overcome the limitation of coverage.

   Samsung developed this smartphone and Windows mobile 6.1 of Microsoft is adoped as the operating system.

   The below is a videoclip which introduces the smartphone. (The voice in the videoclip and hand are mine. However, because I explained it in Korea, you might not understand what I say.) The videoclip was posted on the official corporate blog of SK Telecom last week.

This service is definitely brand-new and innovative services. However, it is not sure whether the service could attract usual customers into seamless internet world. Recently, inews24, a Korean IT-centric news agency, reported an article regarding this service. A reporter kept people in bus under observation.

He mentioned that, even though launching this service is a good try, they do not make good performance yet. There is no problem for internet connection. The reporter did not experience the disconnection of internet even in bus which repeats going and stopping. Moreover, he said that the internet browsing speed is very satisfying.

However, there are a few problems which might prevent many people from using the services.

First of all, handwriting cognition which the touch-screen device is providing is incomplete. It is very hard for people to write something exactly in a bus which is moving. The reporter had to try several times in order to write something exactly.

Second, whenever people do not use internet connection, the device shows several video commercials. These commercials make people to avoid the seat where the device is installed.

Lastly, even though several people become curious to the new device in bus, they usually stop touch the device as soon as they aware that the service is a pay service. Usual people seem to have no needs for internet connection in a moving bus yet.

I agree that internet café in public bus is a very innovative service. However, there are many problems to be solved in order to prosper the service.

   There will be three big changes in Korean WiBro business this year.


   3 years have passed after WiBro service was launched officially in Korea. In June of 2006, SK Telecom and KT started to provide WiBro business using PCMCIA and USB dongle modems. However, only 0.2 mil users subscribed the service until the December of 2008. Even though SK Telecom and KT have made total investment of around 1,600 bil KRW for 3 years, the current performance of WiBro business is terrible. In the late last year, the Korean Government began to make various policies in order to accelerate WiBro business in Korea. In terms of the point of view, 2009 would become a very important year for Korean WiBro business.

  1. Voice service on WiBro network

   WiBro was originally data-centric service. In 2006, Korean Government permitted only data services such as mobile broadband on WiBro network. Thus, each WiBro device has no identification number which usual mobile handsets have. Instead of the identification number, each WiBro device has special ID which is similar to IDs of usual web services and is made of combination of alphabet characters and numbers. Because this ID is not important for users to use only simple internet connection with USB dongle modem, most of users don’t know their own WiBro ID.

   However, in the Christmas Eve of 2008, Korean Communication Commission (KCC) announced that Korean Government will give identification number to WiBro subscribers and permit Voice service on WiBro network in 2009. KT, a WiBro service provider, positively replied to the announcement of Korean Government through announcing that they will provide voice service on WiBro network in 2009. SK Telecom, another WiBro service provider does not yet announce whether they will provide the voice service or not. Because SK Telecom is already operating usual mobile service using CDMA and WCDMA network, it seems very hard that they easily makes the final decision about providing the Voice service on WiBro network.

   Anyway, new aspects of the situation regarding overall mobile market as well as merely WiBro market will be opened in 2009. If KT tries to penetrate mobile voice market beyond fixed communication market, including fixed broadband and fixed voice service, which KT has focused on, new competition situation in Korean telecommunication market will be built up in 2009.

  2. Appearance of new entrant WiBro service provider?

   As well as deciding to give the identification number to WiBro service and permit the voice service on WiBro network, KCC announced to choose new WiBro service provider in 2009. Originally, Hanaro Telecom (Current SK Broadband) was the third WiBro service provider. However, they gave up the business a few years ago and returned the wireless frequency for the business. KCC seems to ignite the competition among WiBro service providers and try to expand WiBro business in Korea through granting the remained frequency, which Hanaro Telecom returned, to a new service provider.

   Yet, the official schedule for deciding a new service provider was not announced. The association of MSOs (Multiple System Operators – Cable TV Companies) is considering whether they will together try to acquire the WiBro business authority. Because, recently, commercialization of IPTV was officially decided and real IPTV will be provided this year. Major IPTV service providers are KT and SK Broadband which are fixed telecommunication companies. IPTV services of telecommunication companies will penetrate the broadcasting market which was originally dominated by MSOs. In order to protect their own business domain, MSOs might try to attack telecommunication companies through jumping into telecommunication market. WiBro is able to become a good weapon of MSOs who want to survive under tough competition with telecommunication companies.

   Beside that, possibility that Samsung tries to become a new WiBro service provider might exist. Samsung Electronics is the biggest manufacturer which provides most of WiBro equipments and several WiBro devices. Even though Clearwire in US and UQ Communications in Japan are building the mobile WiMAX network and several companies in India will be chosen as mobile WiMAX service providers this year and start to build mobile WiMAX network soon, Samsung might want to drive WiBro business in Korea directly. SK Telecom and KT already made the maximum investment which they promised to make when they acquired WiBro business authorities. If SK Telecom and KT will not be able to attract more customers beyond current number of subscribers, they might not increase additional investment. Samsung might try to do the business directly and expand the WiBro business market through igniting the competition among WiBro service providers.

   When the official schedule is announced and a new WiBro service provider is chosen, I will make a new post about the news.

   3. Introduction of WiBro MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator)

   There is no MVNO in Korea, in the area of usual mobile service. However, WiBro MVNO might appear this year. When Korean Government granted the WiBro business authorities, there was a contract condition. In 2009, if any company request to rent WiBro network from SK Telecom and KT, SK Telecom and KT should enable the company to start WiBro business as MVNO.

   If MSOs want to penetrate mobile communication market through providing WiBro service, they might do their WiBro business as MVNO instead of becoming a new WiBro service provider as MNO. If they decide to do MNO business, they have to make at least 800 bil KRW in order to cover only Seoul areas. (SK Telecom and KT could not make the nationwide coverage with 1,600 bil KRW.) Because this investment might become a burden to MSOs, I think that MVNO is better option for MSOs .

   The above events will be hot potatoes in overall Korean mobile industry as well as WiBro area. Until last year, WiBro business was an isolate island in Korean mobile industry. However, it might make a great ramification in the overall mobile industry. I will make posts regarding the above events steadily. 

I made a post regarding 'Voice Service on WiBro (Mobile WiMAX)' in last August. SK Telecom has maintained a negative stance about voice service on WiBro because voice service on WiBro might cause the cannibalization effect toward SKT's existing voice service on CDMA and WCDMA. However, KT had asked that the government should grant the voice service of WiBro. KT has ever demonstrated the VoIP service using WiBro in OECD Ministerial Meeting of last June. KT seems to solve all technical problems for providing VoIP service using WiBro.

However, KT changed their stance regarding voice service on WiBro. Through 3rd quarter conference call, KT announced that they would not provide voice service using WiBro for quite some time. Why does they change their stance? I think there are two reasons.

First, KT might be concerned about the cannibalization effect as SK Telecom. KT has a plan to become incorporated with KTF, one of their subsidiaries. KTF is a mobile operator and provides CDMA and WCDMA service. If KT provides voice service on WiBro, the service would come into collision with KTF's existing business models.

Also, the coverage and quality of service for voice service might be burdens to KT. The coverage of KT's WiBro service covers only 40% of Korean population. Moreover, KT's WiBro service does not support sufficient quality for voice service in INDOOR SPACE. KT has often communicated with customers by informing that WiBro service could make the best performance in outdoor space. Thus, KT should enlarge the service coverage and improve the quality of service in indoor space as well as outdoor space in order to pursue the voice service on WiBro. It might be not a easy decision.

On the other hand, the Korean government seems to be disappointed that SKT and KT are passive for WiBro business in domestic market. A few days ago, the Government announced that another new WiBro service provider will be selected next year. The Government has additional 27MHz available whithin 2.3 GHz bandwidth. It will be given to a new service provider and both data service and voice service are expected to be permitted on WiBro network. The Korean Government wants to invigorate the WiBro business in domestic market by raising new competition among KT, SKT and a new service provider.

The Korean mobile market is wondering which one will be a new WiBro service provider.

   SK Telecom announced to develop and commercialize the first WiBro Femtocell. Femtocell is a small sized base station. SK Telecom has already provided WiBro (mobile WiMAX) service in Korea. However, the service has been able to be used at outdoor areas because of limitation of coverage range. SK Telecom announced that the WiBro coverage could be expanded into indoor areas with the Femtocell.

   There are public buses which provide internet cafe using WiBro (Mobile WiMAX). KT started to provide ;WiBro Internet Cafe in Bus' service in Seoul. Several seats in a bus have devices equipped with touch-screen panel. Currently, it is free service for trial. People who want to enjoy internet or use a streaming music/video service are able to do those activities in a bus. Please refer to the below pictures for your understanding.