Synopsis

South Korea has transformed its economy to one that is more progressively knowledge based. It has invested significantly in telecommunications infrastructure over past decades.

South Korea is ranked 2nd out of 34 with an Asian Telecoms Maturity Index score of 93. (BuddeComm’s “Asian Telecoms Maturity Index”, is an index (on a scale between 0 and 100) that measures and ranks the relative maturity of the telecoms industry in all of the 34 countries in Asia.) Compared to other Asian nations, South Korea has very high mobile and mobile broadband penetration and very high fixed broadband penetration.

Fixed lines in South Korea have been gradually declining over the past five years. This trend is predicted to continue over the next five years to 2023.

South Korea has one of the world’s most active telecommunications and Information Technology (IT) markets backed by strong support from the government. As well as the commitment of the government, the sector is boosted by an innovative private sector and a technologically savvy population. Spending on ICT and high-technology equipment helped lead a transformation of the economy. The government aims to transform the country into a knowledge-based information society in a ‘smart-age’.

Huawei has partnered with LG U+. for the launch of Seoul TechCity as part of its commitment to drive smart city efforts. The Seoul TechCity collaborative project aims to deliver smart city capabilities for the Korean capital.

This report provides an overview of the South Korean telecoms market, including key statistics and infrastructure investments.

Key Developments:

• SK Telecom became the first South Korean mobile operator to test autonomous cars on public roads.
• Huawei has partnered with LG U+. for the launch of Seoul TechCity.
• Fixed lines in South Korea have been gradually declining over the past five years.

Companies covered in this report include:

KT; LG U+; SK Broadband; SK Telecom