Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
SKT, KT, LGU+ beat Verizon in 5G race
Ryu Young-sang, left, executive vice president of SK Telecom, with the firm's first 5G service subscribers at the company's headquarters in central Seoul, Wednesday. From second left are K-pop band EXO's Baekhyun, former Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yuna, para-swimmer Yun Sang-hyuk, customer Park Jae-won, professional gamer Lee Sang-hyeok and another EXO member, Kai. / Courtesy of SK Telecom
By Baek Byung-yeul
By Baek Byung-yeul
Korea's three mobile carriers ― SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus ― launched the world's first commercial fifth-generation (5G) mobile network on Wednesday, just two hours before U.S. mobile carrier Verizon offered its service.
The telecom firms were scheduled to begin their service Friday but abruptly turned on their 5G networks at 11 p.m. Wednesday after Verizon said it would launch its service Thursday.
Officials at the firms said they were requested to attend an emergency meeting by the Ministry of Science and ICT Wednesday afternoon to change their launch date so that they could claim a “world first.”
The U.S. carrier was scheduled to launch its 5G service on April 11 but advanced it to 1 a.m. Thursday (KST), turning on the network in Chicago and Minneapolis.
The three Korean telecom firms held events to mark the launch of their service, naming prominent figures as their first 5G subscribers.
SK Telecom, the country's largest mobile carrier, introduced professional gamer Lee Sang-hyeok, better known by his game ID “Faker”; former Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yuna; Baekhyun and Kai from K-pop boy band EXO; para-swimmer Yun Sung-hyuk, and long-term subscriber Park Jae-won.
KT, the second-largest carrier, said its first 5G service subscriber was Lee Ji-eun, whose husband is a 5G network technician for the country's eastern islands of Ulleung and Dokdo. After opening her 5G smartphone account at KT's retail store in Daegu, Lee said she “will enjoy an uninterrupted 5G video call service with her husband.”
LG Uplus, the No.3 carrier, said car racer Seo Joo-won and his wife, TV personality Kim Min-young, were its honorary first 5G smartphone subscribers.
Science and ICT Minister Yoo Young-min said Thursday the super-fast network will enable the country to move forward.
“The 5G service will make various services that were only available in the imagination, such as unmanned vehicles and robots, and hologram technologies, a reality,” Yoo said. “Through the convergence of various industries, it will also help the country create innovation and added value.”
Commenting on 5G pricing plans, Yoo said he “expects mobile carriers will come up with more affordable pricing once the service is stable and competition between mobile carriers gets more intense.”
The ICT ministry will hold an event at Olympic Park in Seoul, April 8, to celebrate the launch of the new network and demonstrate 5G-enabled convergence services.