The Korea Times

Choi Readies for Paradigm Shift

By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter Samsung Electronics, the world's biggest electronics maker, looks to make a difficult transition from a hardware-oriented company to a software-driven one. And chief executive Choi Gee-sung is assigned as the man to push the project forward. Choi, who became the lone CEO of the company in a management reshuffle in December, which departed from the previous structure of having different CEOs for different business segments, also promises to strengthen Samsung Electronics' position in the traditionally weak areas of personal computers, home appliances and digital cameras. Choi is focusing on injecting creative input all across Samsung Electronics business areas, as the company could no longer rely just on cutting-edge hardware and "volume-focused" manufacturing strategies when the game is becoming more and more about software, content and user experience. Choi, whose assertiveness earned him the nickname "Choi-tler," is revealing his more flexible side to enable the software transition, vowing to give more autonomy to software-related un

Apr 7, 2010By Kim Yoo-chul

Others

Samsung Electronics Braces for Software Leap

By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter SUWON, Gyeonggi Province - Samsung Electronics, the world's biggest technology company, is ready to advanced to its next phase of growth. But this time components, such as memory chips and liquid crystal displays (LCDs), or cutting-edge hardware, such as mobile phones which were for the company what the Walkman had been for Sony, won't be the key drivers of the changes. As the competition in the electronics industry moves increasing toward software programs and content, Samsung Electronics is trying to transform itself to a more software-driven company. It remains to be seen whether the transition would go smoothly, but the company's hiring of more software talent and creation of special task force teams show that the commitment is serious. "Samsung Electronics is pressed to add an element of creativeness in its major consumer items such as smartphones and home appliances. Software-driven products are key for the future, as seen by the fact that iPhone has been eating up Samsung Electronics' handset shares in its own home market," sa

Apr 7, 2010By Kim Yoo-chul

Choi Readies for Paradigm Shift

Others

Kwon Stresses Stability

By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter Looking to ride the surge of the global memory chip market, Kwon Oh-chul, the new head of the world's second-biggest memory chipmaker is looking to stabilize the company's finances. Kwon, the chief executive of Hynix Semiconductor, comes from a background in financial management, not technology, and was picked by the company's creditors to right the ship. Obviously, Kwon's most urgent task would be to find a new owner for the chipmaker, with the 21 percent stake owned by creditors now up for sale. Kwon, who served as Hynix's chief financial officer under former chief Kim Jong-kap, seems to be on the right track. By renewing focus on the company's main markets in DRAMs and NAND flash memory chips, two sectors that are both seeing a rebound in demand, Kwon plans to lower the company's debt to 6 trillion won from the current 7 trillion won by the end of the year. Kwon is also predicting record sales for the Hynix this year, with the global demand in consumer electronics remaining healthy, which would no doubt make the company look t

Apr 7, 2010By Kim Yoo-chul

Others

Memory Boom Has Hynix Looking Up Again

By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter ICHEON, Gyeonggi Province - The executives of Hynix Semiconductor, the world's second-largest memory chipmaker behind domestic rival Samsung Electronics, would do anything they could to attract a new owner for the company. They could only hope that the strengthening chip market, which is predicting record profit for the troubled chipmaker, would make Hynix look more attractive to potential suitors. It remains to be seen whether the strengthening demand for memory chips, driven by an increasing demand for consumer electronics products, would be enough to significantly improve Hynix's financial conditions and motivate potential buyers to go for the splurge. "Potential Hynix buyers have in the past cited uncertainty in the outlook of the global memory chip market, but it is a totally different situation now. Overall, the market is expected to continue its upswing mood over the next two or three years," according to an official at one of Hynix’s creditors. The official, who asked not to be named, predicted that the stalled stake sale proce

Apr 7, 2010By Kim Yoo-chul

Kwon Stresses Stability

Tech & Science

Sony Joins 3D Bandwagon in S. Korea

Struggling Tokyo-Based TV Maker Eyes Breakthroughs By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter Japan's Sony, which is doing everything it can do to better compete with Samsung Electronics in televisions, is eyeing an increased TV share in the South Korean market ― a tomb for foreign consumer electronics players. But this time, the struggling Tokyo-based company may get more chance to attract domestic buyers as it is planning to sell full high-definition (HD) 3D LED-backlit LCD TV sets from July at affordable prices. The plan has mostly been welcomed by consumers here who are eager to buy sets at discounted prices and raises the possibility that Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics will join the price competition, analysts say. "We can confirm our July launch plan of the sale of 3D flat-screen television sets in South Korea," Hong Ji-eun, a representative at Sony's South Korean branch, said Monday. Officials expect Sony to introduce the edge-lit based 3D LED-backlit LCD TV sets with two sets of 3D glasses. The BRAVIA-branded sets can easily convert 2D content into 3D, usin

Apr 5, 2010By Kim Yoo-chul

Companies

Doosan Eyes Foreign Talent

By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter Doosan Group is bringing in foreign talent for decision-making positions as part of its globalization efforts. Doosan executives say the group still needs more foreigners to respond with the needs of globalization, being accelerated under the leadership of Chairman Park Yong-hyun. It has increased the number of top-level foreign executives to three as it just named an Australian national Anthony Helsham to the head of Doosan Infracore's construction equipment unit. Last year, it appointed Charles W. Hawley to handle the group’s human resources. In 2006, it named a former banker James Bemowski as the vice chairman as for a way to boost its global edges. With its overseas expansion, about 46 percent of its workforce is non-Korean. A group spokesman Bae Kyun-ho said it will bring more foreign talent and give them key positions for Doosan's people-first strategy. "We need trendsetters and we also need to standardize processes and systems that Doosan has developed around the world," Bae said, last week. Doosan, which successfully acq

Apr 4, 2010By Kim Yoo-chul

Others

SDI Sets Global Trend

By Kim Yoo-chul Staff Reporter Samsung SDI, the first mass producer of the next-generation of active-matrix organic light-emitting diodes (AM OLED), hopes to stamp its authority as an unbeatable player in the highly promising market. And the company is on the right track toward that goal. ``The OLED market has virtually reached an economy of scale that we haven't seen before,'' Chung Ho-kyoon, vice president of the company said, adding his company will increase the production yield of its AM OLED panels by 80 percent within this year. Production yield is a key indicator in assessing the prospect of a component manufacturing business as the term shows how reliably the maker can meet demands from clients. ``Medium- and large-sized display devices such as monitors, laptops and television sets will get the OLED treatment in 2009 and 2010, which is good news for consumers,'' Lee said. The company expects to achieve a production capacity of three million 2-inch OLED panels by late this year ― double the current capacity ― and of six million in 2009. According to DisplaySearch, a U

May 29, 2008By Kim Yoo-chul

Kim Yoo-chul

Read more

Choi Readies for Paradigm Shift

Samsung Electronics Braces for Software Leap

Kwon Stresses Stability

Memory Boom Has Hynix Looking Up Again

Sony Joins 3D Bandwagon in S. Korea

Doosan Eyes Foreign Talent

SDI Sets Global Trend

Top 5 stories