GSMA, KT, SK Telecom put spotlight on Korean mobile industry

LONDON, UK & SEOUL, KOREA: The GSMA, which represents the interests of the worldwide mobile communications industry, recently held its most recent Board meeting in Seoul, South Korea. The meeting was jointly hosted by Korean mobile operators KT and SK Telecom and attended by executives of the 25 of world's leading mobile operators.

The one-day event also served to highlight the important role of Korea in the world's ICT industry, with executives from Samsung and LG Electronics presenting their visions of future innovation to the GSMA Board.

"Both SK Telecom and KT are considered pioneers in one of the world's most dynamic and technologically advanced markets. We are honoured to have had this opportunity to visit Korea and to learn more about the technologies and services which are shaping the future of communications not only in Korea, but also in the global industry," said Rob Conway, CEO and Member of the Board of the GSMA. "We would especially like to thank KT and SK Telecom for agreeing to host the GSMA Board in their country and for the outstanding hospitality displayed over the past few days."

SK Telecom and KT are extremely active and visible in the GSMA, having served on the Board since 2008 and 2003, respectively. Both organisations take leading roles in the GSMA's committees and working groups, which focus on the investigation and development of a range of technology initiatives which will create greater value for the mobile industry and for businesses and consumers around the world.

For instance, KT and SK Telecom are engaged in the Rich Communication Suite (RCS) initiative, a service providing interoperable, enriched communication capabilities all accessible through a user's mobile phone contact list.

Both SK Telecom and KT have also been proponents of the GSMA SmartSIM project, with the goal of driving the development and adoption of the SmartSIM, a large capacity USIM (Universal Subscriber Identity Module) card that allows users to store personal mobile contents and freely access phonebook data or multimedia files even after switching mobile phones and to run various mobile applications such as personalized portals or multimedia messaging.

SK Telecom was the first to propose the SmartSIM initiative to the GSMA and in February 2009 successfully led the launch of GSMA SmartSIM project to cooperate in the standardisation of such technologies.

Additionally, KT has been heavily involved in the GSMA's Mobile Embedded Initiative, which aims to develop the market for mobile connectivity in machine-to-machine and other consumer devices. KT has also been a leading force in the GSMA's Pay-Buy-Mobile initiative which is designed to provide a single global approach to enabling contactless payments using a mobile phone.

Woo-Sik Kim, President of KT Personal Customer Group said, "With its proactive participation in the GSMA, KT has engaged in the key projects which would increase the value for its customers, while strengthening its position as a key player in the global market by sharing its expertise and learnings in mobile services. KT will continue to work with the GSMA in providing the blueprint of the future mobile industry, and being a driver in the coming era of the ICT renaissance."

Man-Won Jung, CEO of SK Telecom said: "The GSMA Board Meeting has served as a great opportunity for us to show the world Korea's advanced information and communication technologies and services. Moreover, we were able to strengthen our networking with major mobile telecommunications companies around the world. SK Telecom will continue to play its role as the global leader in the ICT industry by actively participating in GSMA activities which contribute to the development of the worldwide mobile telecommunications industry."

The Board meeting highlighted themes related to the role that telecommunications companies would play in the movement to revive the world economy. In April, the GSMA and 24 of the world's largest mobile communications companies signed a letter urging the G-20 governments to endorse ambitious private sector development that could see more than $550 billion of private capital invested, could create 25 million jobs and boost global GDP by between 3-4 percent (source: AT Kearney).

This growth is predicated on the construction of new mobile broadband networks based on the GSM family of technology. In order to ensure the rapid build of networks and successful deployment of services over these networks, G-20 governments must allocate the radio spectrum needed over time to build the new networks, and deliver a stable, predictable and minimally intrusive regulatory environment to encourage the necessary investment.

"At a time when many are looking to government to dig deep to finance an economic recovery, the mobile industry is in the rare position of being able to provide a private sector stimulus," commented Alexander Izosimov, Chairman, GSMA. "Mobile has the ability to connect hundreds of millions into the global information economy, and in doing so, usher in a new era of productivity, efficiency and prosperity."