• MEMBERS

Korea set to play greater role in global IT industry

Print | Email

Information and Communication Minister Yang Seung-taik said in a keynote speech titled "Economic Trends & IT Policy Directions of Korea" that the IT industry is taking a greater role in the country's export drive and economic growth.

He said Korea had long relied on foreign business and economic growth models, but the trend changed last year. "We couldn't find a model last year when Korea emerged as one of the largest broadband and mobile service providers," Minister Yang said.

Korea had 6 million broadband users in June last year, with major broadband carriers poised to reach the break-even point, confounding foreign experts who believed high-speed Internet services were not viable, he said.

"We found out that KT Corp. needs just 3 million users to break even, while cable-based broadband carrier Korea Thrunet Co. and Hanaro Telecom Inc. need 1.8 million and 3.5 million users, with the goals just about to be achieved," Minister Yang said.

The government's determination to help telecom firms expand broadband infrastructure led to record-breaking growth and other countries are now keen to learn from Korea's broadband and wireless business models, he said.

KT Corp. CEO Lee Sang-chul, another keynote speaker, said that Korea is leading the integration of different networking platforms, a key factor that he believes will create a new source of economic growth.

"It's now difficult to find a fresh source of growth from the traditional production style, and what matters in the future is how we set up a common infrastructure that can improve overall efficiency," Lee said.

Lee said Korea is laying the foundation for the integration of networking platforms by adopting new technologies such as wireless LAN (local area network) and home networking solutions.

Foreign venture capitalists are interested in investing in the country because of the fast-evolving technology trends here. In addition, Korea is also quick to embrace and implement new technologies and solutions, reflecting greater energy in the high-tech industry, Vieux noted.

But there are some "cultural blocking points" and Korean IT companies should strengthen their global competitiveness in order to sprint forward, venture capitalists and experts said.

Jane Crawford, management director of 3i PLC, also pointed out that Korea is yet to enter a mature venture capital investment stage. "At this stage, venture capitalists will focus on whether the management team of an info-tech company in Korea is good or not, rather than whether they have great technology," she said.

Aside from the immature venture capitalist market, Korea is now in the midst of choosing its unique path: software, hardware or a mixture of both.

Korea has built up its broadband and other high-tech infrastructure relatively fast compared to other countries, but it is high time it went beyond the builder model, technology specialists said.

Experts said Korea has more potential than other countries in the IT sector but it has to transform its model in two to three years to go a step further.

"Korea is at a crossroads in terms of whether the country wants to follow the model of Taiwan, Israel or China," said Jin Byun, CEO of Grey Prism, in a roundtable discussion session.

As for the country's future business model, TriGem Computer Chairman Lee Yong-tae suggested that the government should push for large-scale international exchange programs for Korean college students with global IT companies.

Such programs would allow students and future IT specialists to learn the essential factors to advance the country's IT competitiveness, Lee said.

The ARTE 2002 in Seoul also delved into the recovery in the global technology field and other key issues.

The foreign guest list of the ATRE 2002 includes Symantec CEO John Schwarz, Check Point Software CEO Jerry Ungerman, Carlyle Group CEO Tony Jansz and George Hara, management partner of Defta Partners.

Vieux said that the conference is designed to let the world know that Korea is ready to become a technology hotbed in Asia and how local IT players can attract major foreign venture capitalists, forge partnerships with major global firms and map out a long-term vision in the high-tech sector.

ATRE is a sister event to the European Technology Roundtable Exhibition, an annual invitation-only get-together of IT leaders in Europe. The conference usually attracts top Silicon Valley investors, some 1,000 CEOs (such as Bill Gates of U.S. software giant Microsoft Corp.) and start-ups in search of cash and credibility.

DASAR, established in 1990, specializes in what it calls "IT relationship builder" to connect entrepreneurs with venture capitalists and the heads of large tech companies.

For further information about the conference, call 02-2008-0777.

(insight@koreaherald.co.kr)