By Kim Yoo-chul
Staff Reporter

KT, the nation's second-largest mobile carrier, plans to request more iPhones from Apple to cope with unprecedented demand here.

With the firm belief over the phone's steady popularity, KT officials say the company is mulling over the possibility to introduce the next 3GS model, in addition to the basic model.

``We've got some 90,000 iPhone new subscribers, including 53,000 pre-orders after KT officially began local sales of the smartphone on Nov. 28. Although KT is receiving more from China, we need more,'' a KT representative said Thursday.

KT has been expanding the supply of iPhones to local outlets from this week, according to the official. South Korea currently has just approximately 400,000 people using smartphones.

``Triggered by iPhones' debut in South Korea, the market for smartphones offering e-mail and Web browsing is on a healthy track, giving us a need for more iPhones,'' the representative said.

Asked about the timing on talks to introduce the iPhone's next model here, he declined to elaborate but said, ``We will open up the talks soon.''

A smartphone is defined as a mobile communications device that has the capabilities of surfing the Internet, offers map functions, and plays music and movies.

If the latest launch of the Apple phone can mirror that of the U.S., the South Korean market will begin to be flooded with devices from local companies, some analysts say.

The South Korean market dominated by Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics has been regarded as a ``tomb'' for foreign handset makers due to their weaker after-sales policies and higher-standards demanded by local consumers.

However, unlike earlier predictions, Apple has gained serious traction here.

According to data from Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, the local share captured by Samsung was 50 percent in November, a decrease of 6 percentage points from a month earlier.

The local share of LG Electronics was 22.1 percent during the same period. Analysts say Apple has secured 5 percent since its debut of the iPhone.

``It is too early to gauge the exact impact of the iPhone on the local market as we've just begun distributing the phones to outlets,'' another KT representative said.

KT is forecast to sell over 700,000 iPhones next year if it maintains its current exclusive sales right, according to a recent report by Japanese investment bank Nomura.

yckim@koreatimes.co.kr