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Kim Bo-eun

Korea Times Digital Content Reporter

Bo-eun leads the digital content team. She has covered foreign affairs, North Korea, tech, economy and gender issues at The Korea Times. She did a short stint at the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, where she obtained a new perspective on news production and life. Small sources of joy for her are lounging in the sun, having a good latte and swimming.

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Companies

SK likely to secure status as key Hyundai E-GMP supplier

Hyundai Motor's EV models / Courtesy of Hyundai MotorBy Kim Bo-eunSK Innovation will likely secure the status of a dominant supplier for Hyundai's E-GMP electric vehicle platform, as it is included on the list of vendors for a third batch of supplies.The company supplied the first batch of batteries for the platform, while LG Energy Solution provided the second, along with China's CATL. Hyundai is in the process of selecting battery makers to supply the third batch. SK, LG, CATL and Samsung SDI are known to have taken part in the bidding that began in September last year. The carmaker is seeking to secure multiple suppliers this time around. "We are seeking to increase the number of suppliers as a means to diversify sources," a Hyundai Motor official said Monday.Increasing the number of suppliers appears necessary given the scale of the supply this time. For the first batch, 10 trillion won's worth of batteries were supplied, in the second 16 trillion won's worth and in the third about 20 trillion won's worth of batteries are projected to be supplied."Having a single vendor entails r

Feb 2, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
SK likely to secure status as key Hyundai E-GMP supplier
Tech & Science

KT partners with LH for overseas internet data center projects

KT's head of global business Moon Sung-wook, left, poses with his counterpart at the Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH), Lee Yong-sam, after the two companies signed an agreement to work together to build KT internet data centers overseas markets. / Courtesy of KTBy Kim Bo-eunKT has partnered with the Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) to build overseas internet data centers, the telecom firm said Monday, with the two firms signing a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) the same day.The company is seeking to set up the data centers in industrial centers and smart cities, based on its expertise in that segment. KT currently operates 13 data centers in Korea, including Seoul's largest hyper-scale data center in Yongsan, which opened in November. The two companies plan to install KT data centers in industrial centers that LH has built overseas. KT intends to offer services in digital transformation to Korean and foreign companies in the industrial complexes. LH's role is to expand customer-tailored infrastructure for the firms in the complexes to heighten their co

Feb 1, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
KT partners with LH for overseas internet data center projects
Tech & Science

SK hynix CEO wins award from global tech society

By Kim Bo-eunSK hynix CEO Lee Seok-hee / Courtesy of SK hynixSK hynix CEO Lee Seok-hee received the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Consumer Technology Society (CTSoc) Distinctive Exemplary Industry Leader Award for 2020, the company said Sunday. Lee attended the award ceremony online.The IEEE is the world's largest association of professionals in electronic and electrical engineering, with over 423,000 members in 160 countries around the world.According to the society, the award recognizes a distinctive and exemplary industry executive whose leadership has made a notable global impact and who has led preeminent advancements in consumer technology.Lee was awarded based on his leadership and technological contributions to the memory chip industry, SK hynix said.Lee has served as SK hynix CEO since December 2018. He first joined the chip maker in 1990 and returned in 2013 to lead SK hynix's Future Technology Research Institute, after stints at Intel and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).SK hynix is the world's second-largest memory

Feb 1, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
SK hynix CEO wins award from global tech society
Tech & Science

ICT firms battle for intellectual property rights in content biz

Naver CEO Han Seong-sook, Kakao Chairman Kim Beom-su and KT CEO Ku Hyeon-mo / Courtesy of each companyBy Kim Bo-eunTech firms are zeroing in on securing intellectual property rights in diverse forms as they seek to scale up their content lineup amid increasing demand for digital-based entertainment.Content providers such as Netflix are thriving as the COVID-19 pandemic drags on and people are spending more time at home. This has prompted non-conventional players to set their sights on new opportunities and they are investing to set up new entities in the sector.Naver recently announced plans to acquire the Canadian social storytelling platform, Wattpad, as part of a drive to scale up its content business.The portal giant will buy Wattpad, the world's largest platform for writers and readers, with more than 90 million users, for $600 million."Competition is heating up in the global market for over-the-top (OTT) media services and demand is growing for good intellectual property. It is important to secure high-quality intellectual property and platforms for webtoons, while web-based no

Feb 1, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
ICT firms battle for intellectual property rights in content biz
Companies

Competition heating up for hydrogen vehicles

Hyundai Motor seeks to solidify leadership through huge investmentBy Kim Bo-eunThe market for hydrogen-powered vehicles is gaining momentum amid global interest in the fuel as a means of meeting carbon targets.Major economies have announced plans to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and have unveiled national roadmaps for building a hydrogen economy. These efforts are placing an increased focus on eco-friendly vehicles such as electric vehicles (EVs) and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).The market for FCEVs remains a niche segment of the global car market but is seeing growth. According to energy market tracker SNE Research, 2,594 hydrogen-powered vehicles were sold worldwide in the third quarter of 2020, up 27.3 percent from the same quarter of 2019.Those in the industry state that FCEVs are more suitable than EVs for delivery trucks that carry heavy loads and travel long distances. Major vehicle makers are in a race to secure a major share of the market as it develops. Leading French carmaker Groupe Renault said earlier this month it will set up a joint venture with Plu

Jan 28, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
Competition heating up for hydrogen vehicles
Tech & Science

Samsung SDI expecting growth in battery biz in 2021

By Kim Bo-eunSamsung SDI said Thursday it expects to see profits in its automotive battery business this year based on the expansion of the market.The company had initially expected the business would reach the break-even point in the fourth quarter of last year."We were not able to meet that target due to quality cost-related provisioning. Without provisioning, our EV battery business showed significant profitability improvement," Senior Vice President Son Michel said in a conference call upon announcing the company's fourth-quarter earnings. "We expect revenue to grow on a year-on-year basis, and in the first quarter, battery profitability will be close to the break-even point," he said, adding that the first quarter is usually a seasonally weak quarter.Samsung SDI's new Gen. 5 battery, which will start being supplied in the second half of this year, is expected to drive the company's earnings in the automotive battery division."We are on schedule with product testing and preparations for mass production," Son said.Given the fact that the Gen. 5 delivers high energy density and is

Jan 28, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
Samsung SDI expecting growth in battery biz in 2021
  • Samsung Electronics to boost dividends through 2023
Tech & Science

Will Kakao's ESG committee be able to keep governance issues in check?

By Kim Bo-eun Kakao Chairman Kim Beom-suQuestions are being raised over whether an environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) committee Kakao launched earlier this month will be able to properly supervise the IT giant's governance issues, given its owner-manager Chairman Kim Beom-su also heads the committee.The ESG committee is comprised of Kim and two outside directors. While the inclusion of the outside directors is aimed at keeping the owner's influence in check, the question is whether they will be able to speak up about possible governance issues.The committee is seen to have been created to prevent possible ethical issues arising from the use of artificial intelligence (AI), or the use of personal data, after a Kakao affiliate caused controversy over the mishandling of personal information.While it is expected to focus on these areas, governance is also a key pillar of the committee which seeks to align the company's business to values supporting the environment, creating benefits for society and achieving good governance.Kakao's governance gained attention after Kim

Jan 27, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
Will Kakao's ESG committee be able to keep governance issues in check?
  • Are Kakao boss' children being prepared for future succession?
Tech & Science

With Samsung chief Lee dropping appeal, Cheong Wa Dae holds key

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong enters the Seoul High Court to attend a retrial of his bribery case held Jan. 18. / Korea Times photo by Bae Woo-hanTwo-and-half-year prison term finalized, eyes on Cheong Wa Dae for possible pardonBy Kim Bo-eunSamsung heir Lee Jae-yong decided to accept a ruling by an appellate court last week in a bribery case that handed him a prison sentence, his legal representatives said Monday. Prosecutors also stated the same day they would not appeal the sentence.This finalizes a two-and-a-half year jail sentence for Lee.The Seoul High Court handed down the prison sentence to Lee, Jan. 18, for paying bribes to former President Park Geun-hye and her confidant Choi Soon-sil, in exchange for them allowing a smooth transfer of power from his father Lee Kun-hee. The Samsung Electronics vice chairman returned to prison the same day.Samsung's leader was cited as saying he would "humbly accept the ruling." Lee is seen to have given up an appeal against the ruling as it appears unlikely the top court would overturn it.The Seoul High Court held a final re

Jan 25, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
With Samsung chief Lee dropping appeal, Cheong Wa Dae holds key
Tech & Science

SKT's One Store on track for IPO

By Kim Bo-eunPreparations for SK Telecom's market app One Store to go public are set to accelerate after the affiliate posted its first annual profit in 2020.One Store had been running at a deficit for four years since its launch in 2016, but the profit signals that its business has stabilized and is now on a growth trajectory.The company said this week it posted profits for the fourth quarter of 2020 and that it saw growth for 10 consecutive quarters. One Store did not unveil earnings figures; but according to its parent company SK Telecom's filings, the affiliate posted cumulative sales of 123 billion won in the first three quarters and a net profit of 2.3 billion won. "The profit is the result of continuous growth based on the expansion of customers and product offerings," a One Store official said. "2020 was also a good year because of the growth of mobile content services due to COVID-19.""Growth was pronounced in games and apps enabling subscriptions of webtoons and other content. One Store also achieved growth based on a fee cut."One Store's market share had grown to 18.4 perc

Jan 22, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
SKT's One Store on track for IPO
Tech & Science

LG Electronics rolls out robot barista

LG Electronics employees wait for a cup of brewed coffee prepared by CLOi BaristaBot at LG's headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul. / Courtesy of LG ElectronicsBy Kim Bo-eunLG Electronics employees are now able to enjoy a cup of brewed coffee prepared by a robot barista at the conglomerate's headquarters on Yeouido, Seoul.The CLOi BaristaBot, the “intelligent” machine, was the first to acquire a robot brewing master certificate from the Korea Coffee Association. A brewing master certificate evaluates an individual's or now a robot's understanding of coffee brewing tools and the skill in brewing quality coffee. LG employees appeared to be excited about their shiny new colleague, which appears set to gradually replace the boring coffee machine sitting in the lounge."We used to have a coffee machine in the lounge area, but now we are able to enjoy a cup of pour over coffee made by CLOi BaristaBot," an LG official said.BaristaBot is not the only robot to roll off of LG's assembly lines.The company has made robots a key pillar of its future business ― the conglomerate has been focusi

Jan 22, 2021By Kim Bo-eun
LG Electronics rolls out robot barista
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