By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter
Korea experienced a boom in information technology (IT), which made the nation one of the world's high-tech powerhouses. A high-speed Internet infrastructure, network robots, radio tags and embedded software made up part of the nation's competitive edge.
But now, the ``IT mantra'' seems to have lost its past glory ― at least under the current administration, which has put more emphasis on a four-river refurbishment project.
A new book, ``Internet Story,'' written by Korea Times reporter Kim Tae-gyu details the untold stories of the country's IT industries that the author strongly believes are its future.
The book consists of three major areas ― search engines, video sharing sites and social networking. The writer examines the powerful players both in Korea and the United States to look at what is going on in the IT world and Internet sector by exploring Google, Naver, YouTube, Pandora TV, Cyworld, MySpace, Facebook and Twitter.
The author invents some eye-catching terminologies to define the IT era and the nature of its users, and observes unique characteristics of the Korean IT market, showing how the industries have changed and will continue to change people's lives.
The first chapter deals with Internet search technology that most people think has evolved fast enough. But the writer says that Korea has many miles to go to reach the ultimate goals that the industry is pursuing for the future.
The second chapter touches upon the issues of video sharing. Video is becoming an essential medium for online communication as a result of the advancement in technology. Videos will remain a major medium of communication, at least until three-dimensional (3D) stereography becomes conventional as a technology. Sites such as Pandora TV and YouTube are driving the video-led revolution in online communication.
The third chapter explores social networking services such as Cyworld, the Korean equivalent of the U.S.-based MySpace. The chapter sees more potential for such online sites among the new generation of users who build up solidarity in cyberspace.
The book generally criticizes the policies of the Lee Myung-bak administration which it says is at least partially responsible for the declining fortune of high-tech businesses.
According to its annual survey on global IT competitiveness, the Business Software Alliance ranked Korea third in 2007 but dropped it to eighth in 2008, when President Lee Myung-bak took office, and 16th last year.
The author argues that Korea needs to shift its policy priority from pump-priming construction work to knowledge-intensive businesses down the road.
The four-river refurbishment plan involving the country's four main rivers ― the Han, Nakdong, Geum and Yeongsan ― is currently underway at a cost of some 30 trillion won.
``This means 500,000 won in tax per person for the river project. This can be translated into 2 million won for a four-member household. But can the benefits from the project return to the family? Is it worth 2 million won for the benefits? Instead, what about IT projects for the future? I think the benefits can be worth more than 2 million,'' the author says.