By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
Naver (www.naver.com), the country's most popular Web site, is adding telephony functions to its local search services, enabling users to make collect calls to businesses listed on its Web maps.
The "click-to-call" service is part of Naver's efforts to develop its local search lineup, which includes maps, mobile search and other location-relevant content, into a new advertising platform, creating a digital version of the Yellow Pages.
NHN, the operator of Naver, and KT, the country's biggest telephone company, are now collaborating on a trial service that integrates KT's "Call Link" collect call services to Naver's maps.
Users can be connected to any listed business over KT's fixed-line telephony network by clicking on the image or text descriptions of the shops on the maps, NHN officials said.
"This is one of the first products of our partnership with KT to blend our Web services with telecommunications, which will certainly add to the user experience and help local search tap into its potential as a business model," said an NHN official.
Unlike other telephony services provided by Web sites, which are mostly based on voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) and requires users to have headsets or VoIP-enabled phones, Naver's service has an edge as it enables consumers to use their own phones without being charged for the calls.
For example, a user looking to find a sushi restaurant in Gwanghwamun, downtown Seoul, can type "Gwanghwamun sushi restaurant" in Naver's search box and pick from among the results, which also include a map.
The user can click the restaurant on the map and type in his phone number, which will automatically dial the restaurant under the collect-call arrangement.
The businesses won't be charged for the calls throughout the trial service that runs until February, while the click-to-call services will be provided only to the shops subscribing to KT's Call Link service from March.
KT is hoping that its partnership with Naver will allow it to explore new opportunities to generate revenue from online advertising.
"The KT Call Link combines Web services and telecommunications to meet the needs of Internet users, and we believe we can develop the services further by testing a variety of advertising models," a KT representative said.