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Lee speaks out against brother

By Kim Yoo-chul Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee made it clear once again that he has no intention to compromise with his older brother over a family inheritance feud, saying that Lee Maeng-hee was kicked out of his family long ago. ``Lee Maeng-hee was already been abandoned by the Samsung family. He is insisting that he is the oldest son of our late father. But none of the Samsung family, including myself, thinks he should be regarded as Samsung’s first son,’’ said the conglomerate’s chairman in a meeting with reporters at its headquarters in downtown Seoul, on his way to work early Tuesday. ``Decades ago, he strongly criticized my father in front of then President Park Chung-hee. He has no authority to speak out about the family-related matters,’’ the chairman added. His comments came a day after Lee Maeng-hee blamed the chairman for aggravating the relationship between the brothers and always looking for his own gain in a statement released by his lawyer. ``The recent remarks by Kun-hee aren’t acceptable. I was very embarrassed. They were childish remarks an

Apr 24, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

LG Disaply posts losses for 6 quarters in a row

By Kim Yoo-chul LG Display posted an operating loss for the first quarter of this year as economic uncertainties sapped consumer demand for digital devices such as televisions. But the company, one of the critical units of LG Group, is confidant of seeing a turnaround in the second quarter as it believes it will get more screen orders from major companies ahead of the upcoming Summer Olympics in London. During the January-March period, LG saw its operating loss rise to 178 billion won from 148 billion won in the previous quarter, it said in a regulatory filing to the Korea Exchange (KRX), the nation’s main bourse operator. LG Display extended its losing streak for the six straight quarters since the fourth quarter of 2010. Revenue for the first quarter was also cut by 6 percent to reach 6.18 trillion won from 6.61 trillion won during the same period, while net losses were 129 billion won, LG said in the filing. ``The first quarter was not so bad, though we’ve reported an operating loss. Panel prices will rise in the second quarter and we will ship more premium prod

Apr 24, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

LG frets over Qualcomm’s fall

By Kim Yoo-chul LG Electronics and Pantech are facing a bumpy road ahead in their attempts to make a comeback in the smartphone market as key chip supplier Qualcomm is struggling to meet their demands. The two firms, as well as Samsung Electronics are paying ``billions of dollars’’ to Qualcomm in return for using its patented ``one-chip solution,’’ which integrates the functions of 3G, 4G, mobile application processor (AP) and telecom into one for their smartphones. The Korean phone makers are loyal partners that provide large chunks of Qualcomm’s yearly revenue. Qualcomm said it shipped 152 million MSM-dubbed chipsets last year, up 29 percent from 2010. But its MSM8960, the one-chip solution, is the problem. ``Although the manufacturing yields are progressing per expectation, there’s a shortage of 28-nanometer capacity,’’ Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs said. ``And at this stage, we cannot secure enough supply to meet the increasing demand we’re experiencing. We’re working closely with our partners to bring additional capacity online,’’ Jacobs told investors of this rar

Apr 24, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

Samsung, Sony team up on OLED

By Kim Yoo-chul Sony is seeking to purchase Samsung Electronics’ next-generation advanced organic light-emitting diode (OLED) flat-screens for its new line of TVs. Sony wants its Bravia televisions ― to be marketed as early as next year ― to have Samsung’s OLED screens, officials of the Korean technology firm told The Korea Times, Sunday. ``Bravia OLED TVs will be available to consumers from early next year,” said a Samsung official, adding that a deal is being worked on regarding the pricing and supply volume. The OLED tie-up follows the termination of their seven-year LED joint venture in December after the Japanese firm reported a $1.2 billion annual loss. The latest deal comes because their mutual needs dovetail. Lee Seung-joon, a Samsung Electronics spokesman, declined to comment officially, but said the company was open to cooperation in OLED screens to boost that business. Hong Ji-eun, a representative of Sony Korea, also didn’t comment. Top Samsung and Sony officials met last week to deal with details. Compared to LCDs, OLED TVs are much brighter and

Apr 22, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

LG Group goes to US to hire talent

By Kim Yoo-chul LG Group is stepping up efforts to secure more talented individuals with a global mindset to lead in the development of patented technology. LG Chairman Koo Bon-moo himself went to the United States to support the move. On Sunday, LG said it held the LG Techno Conference in San Francisco, California, with the group’s eight affiliates including LG Electronics, LG Display and LG Chem to hire ethnic Koreans studying there. Koo and senior LG executives attended the event. ``At the conference, Koo said LG will invest more in R&D,’’ according LG spokeswoman Kim Min-jeong. ``This is the first time that our chairman was in the U.S. to hire new research personnel. Chairman Koo will continue to attend this kind of meeting, if necessary,’’ said Kim. She went on to say company executives had one-on-one meetings with those invited by LG. She said the conference targeted Koreans in the United States who’ve earned either a master’s or doctoral degree in software, electrical engineering, chemicals, technology and materials-related majors. The conglomerate recently e

Apr 22, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

LS Cable completes joint R&D center

By Kim Yoo-chul LS Cable, a leading local wire and cable solution provider, has completed a combined research and development (R&D) center by integrating its R&D section with that of LS Mtron. ``LS Cable and LS Mtron moved their R&D centers previously located in Anyang to the newly-built one in Gunpo. LS Cable is going to step up efforts to develop the company’s next growth engines as we’ve completed the construction of the center,’’ said spokesman Pete Kim, Sunday. LS has research centers in South Korea, China, Europe and North America. The Gunpo R&D center will play a role as a control tower to organize and handle various company projects. The new center has six stories on land of 12,700 square meters. A total of 500 research personnel will work there, while the building is with cutting-edge equipment to produce key products with the aim of cutting costs, LS said in a statement. ``LS Cable will focus on eco-friendly technologies such as nano technology and solutions for use in electric vehicles, which we identified as next-growth engines,’’ said Kim. LS Mtron, whi

Apr 22, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

LG CNS CEO calls for data revolution

By Kim Yoo-chul The lack of sophistication in data management capabilities is preventing Korean companies from taking the next big step in growth, according to the chief executive of LG CNS, a leading provider of information technology and systems. At the ``Entrue World 2012’’ forum in Seoul Thursday, LG CNS CEO Kim Dae-hoon called for firms to embrace the concept of ``big data analytics,’’ which focuses on analyzing and utilizing the massive amount of data on company servers and the Internet. ``This concept could no longer be considered a specialized solution for technology companies. In all industries, companies are required to find quicker and effective ways to handle the larger amount of data and use it to improve their business,’’ he said at the seminar, which was joined by around 1,500 industry people. ``It’s crucial that Korean companies embrace big data analytics as these systems are built to store, analyze and utilize large volumes of data beyond just e-mails, texts and images.’’ Big data analytics has become a technology buzzword and is gaining increasing ac

Apr 19, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

LG Chem vows rebound after disappointing Q1

By Kim Yoo-chul LG Chem, a global maker of chemicals products and rechargeable batteries used in electric vehicles, sustained a decline in operating profit during the first quarter due to rising costs and weak demand for petrochemical products in China. The company’s operating profit of 459.9 billion won (about $403 million) in the three months to March represented a 45 percent annual decline, while its net income of 380.9 billion won was down 42 percent from last year. Its revenue of 5.75 trillion won represented a 4.8 percent year-on-year increase. LG Chem officials claim that the company is enduring a temporary rough patch and things could only get better from now. Profitability will rebound in the coming months as the company has been shipping a larger volume of batteries to global auto giants like General Motors and Renault. ``The market for petrochemical products will get better too as the sector enters its favorable stretch for the year. There will be visible improvement in revenue and profit for the second quarter,’’ said LG Chem spokesman C.S. Song. ``The incr

Apr 19, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

Samsung, Apple may make up

By Kim Yoo-chul Top executives of Samsung Electronics and Apple will soon meet to seek a compromise on the patent war that has lasted more than a year. “Samsung can confirm that our CEO Choi Gee-sung will meet Apple CEO Tim Cook, though the exact time and place haven’t been decided yet,” said a Samsung spokesman, Wednesday. The Cupertino, California-based Apple also admitted that its chief executive Cook, who replaced the late Steve Jobs in the top job, will represent his firm in the settlement talks with Apple’s general counsel. The meeting comes after the two electronics giants reached a consensus on settlement talks via alternative dispute resolution (ADR) efforts. That means both had to be fully cooperative, increasing the possibility of concluding the issue, according to legal experts based in Seoul. Despite the admittance of the meeting, Samsung is still saying no imminent peace treaty will come in the foreseeable future because the meeting comes after an order from a court in the United States. Judge Lucy Koh, who is presiding over the case in the U.S. Distri

Apr 18, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
Tech & Science

Uneasy Samsung, LG

Korean tech giants welcome Sony’s new restructuring plans By Kim Yoo-chul Samsung and LG Electronics have shown mixed feelings over the current business troubles of Japan’s Sony. Because the Tokyo-based Sony is still one of the top partners for the Korean companies, which buys ``billions of dollars worth’’ of components, the firms are closely monitoring any possible impact of Sony’s drastic restructuring plans of its key businesses. ``Well, we aren’t entirely happy to see the ongoing troubles about Sony’s hardware-focused businesses, as Sony is still one of our top clients. Samsung wants Sony to recover soon,’’ said a high-ranking Samsung executive, asking not to be identified. Until 2010, Sony was Samsung’s top client but Apple emerged as Samsung’s biggest customer from last year. In 2010, Sony bought some $5.3 billion worth of parts, according to Samsung Electronics. Samsung was selling flat-screens and memory chips such as advanced mobile DRAMs and NAND flashes for use in Sony’s BRAVIA-branded televisions and smartphones. ``As Samsung has been making money by

Apr 18, 2012By Kim Yoo-chul
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