Sue J. Hur(Sue J. Hur)
“Red Friday” Looms – Will Apple Prop Up Disappointing Sales With iPhone 5 Bargains?
  ·  2013년 01월 24일

Apple Korea will attempt to improve its flagging sales figures by holding a one-day sales event in the run-up to Lunar New Year, on February 10th. “Red Friday” became an annual event in 2011, similar to “Black Friday” held in the US. The event is held in several Asian countries, including China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Korea.

[Part I] ZooDoc: 3 Reasons Why They Succeeded
  ·  2013년 01월 23일

Korea has GooDoc, and America’s got ZocDoc. Earlier on this month, ZocDoc received more than 2.5 million people visits and 130% bump in bookings. Annual physical tests booked on ZocDoc are up about 650% since 2010. Consequently, it has raised $95 million in funding to date. What are their 3 reasons for success? In Part II, we will investigate the differences and provide an analysis of the current Korean market.

VCNC Raises 3 billion KRW (Approx. 3 million USD) Investment
  ·  2013년 01월 23일

The creator of “Between”, VCNC (CEO: Jaewook Park) recently received a whopping 3 billion KRW (approx. 3 million USD) investment from four investors.

Premium e-book Provider, iPortfolio from Korea, Secures $100k/yr Partnership with Oxford University Press
  ·  2013년 01월 23일

500 year old Oxford University Press has signed a major partnership deal with Korean iPortfolio as the preferred supplier for their expanding digital textbook platform. iPortfolio expects royalty revenue of at least $100k per year as a result of the deal, which is based on a new model for Korean software exports.

What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger: Qualcomm’s Investment In Pantech (But What Is It Anyway?)
  ·  2013년 01월 23일

Qualcomm will be investing $23 million in Pantech, the company ranked 3rd in the mobile industry in South Korea. Who is Pantech? Will there be a shift in dynamics? Will there be significant changes made in the industry? Why is Kanye West relevant in all this? beSUCCESS answers these questions.

[Weekly News] What’s Up In Korea? (23. Jan)
  ·  2013년 01월 23일

beSUCCESS covers weekly news in Korea, 23 Jan.

The Dark Side of Korean Startup Tech “Innovation”: Large-scale Theft?
  ·  2013년 01월 22일

Large Korean corporations have been accused of stealing innovation from startups, and copying it, backed by massive marketing budgets and distribution channels. This has the short and long term potential to seriously damage the thriving tech ecosystem in Korea. Your opinions on this are welcome.

LG’s Anticipated Follow-up to the Popular Optimus G to Hit Stores in April
  ·  2013년 01월 22일

The Optimus G set a new sales record for LG, which sold more than 1M units in the three months after release, and the follow-up is set for release in April: Optimus G Pro

Korea’s Smartphone Film Awards are Back, and this Year They’re International
  ·  2013년 01월 21일

Olleh’s Smartphone Film Awards are back this year and this time they are accepting international entrants. There is nearly $50k up for grabs in prize money, plenty of high-tech gadgets to give away, and the possibility of an entry at the Beijing Film Awards for the winner!

Korea 1 and 2 in American Mobile Market, Pushing Apple into 3rd Place
  ·  2013년 01월 21일

Samsung and LG have regained 1st and 2nd place in the US phone market, with poor sales of the iPhone 5 responsible for the increased market share by the two Korean manufacturers.

LG and Samsung back in Court Over Alleged Display Patent Infringements
  ·  2013년 01월 21일

LG and Samsung scuffle over alleged display patent infringements. The Korean government calls for a return to innovation, rather than court battles.

The A-list: the people you should meet if you want to do business in Korea
  ·  2013년 01월 17일

The A-list. The star-studded lineup. The white list. The list of Korean people you should meet if you want to do business in Korea. [Investors] K Cube Ventures : CEO- Jimmy Rim. Successfully invested in 9 different startups. One of the hottest firms in the community. It kicked off in 2012, and are focusing on early-stage companies (inc. startups) in mobile and IT. Their investments range from KRW 0.1 billion to KRW…

[Part II] On KakaoTalk Policy Changes – how will it affect the Korean mobile industry?
  ·  2013년 01월 17일

Kakao’s effort to lessen the effect of these ‘spam’ invites should be welcomed by mobile game developers. Users’ experiences with games naturally lead to an understanding and ‘feel’ of the platform that provides it. If Kakao wants to expand further, they will need to optimize their user experience as much as they can.

[Part I] In anticipation of Kakao’s overseas expansion
  ·  2013년 01월 16일

Kakao, the South Korean IM giant sought to partner up with American corporations such as Google and Facebook to name a few as a way to reach US smartphone users. They also successfully raised 92 billion KRW from the Chinese internet gaming company, Tencent (72 million) and a Korean company, WeMade Entertainment (20 million). Kakao will also consider an initial public offering (IPO) starting this year.

[Weekly News] What’s up in Korea? (14. Jan)
  ·  2013년 01월 14일

beSUCCESS covers weekly news in Korea, 14 Jan.

Gaming Shutdown Policy Extension in Korea…Funded by Gaming Companies?
  ·  2013년 01월 14일

WeMadeEntertainment, the maker of AniPang (one of the most played online games in Korea) announced yesterday that they will be boycotting G-Star 2013, the global gaming expo in Korea. With the opposition to the bill gaining a lot of support from the gaming and IT industry, it will be interesting to see how events unfold. beSUCCESS investigates the Shutdown Law and the recently passed bill that suggests a 1% collection of annual income from gaming companies.

Japan-Korea (Sony-CJ E&M) Games Rivalry, Sparks Talk of Law Suits
  ·  2013년 01월 14일

Korean Kakao Talk game, Everybody Cha Cha Cha, has infuriated Sony Computer Entertainment, who are beginning legal proceedings after claiming the Korean firm has stolen its intellectual property and game content.

High-tech TV content Search and Smart home Security at CES
  ·  2013년 01월 10일

Smart Home advances at CES 2013 from NetGear (live remote security feeds and advanced TV tech)- Much more coming in this space in 2013 from the major players.

[Part II] On the LG Investment: what about Samsung?
  ·  2013년 01월 10일

It’s no news that LG Display competes with Samsung for the title of the world’s largest LCD maker. At the same time, LG is also seeking to expand its manufacturing lines to meet heavy demands for their tablets and smartphones. Meanwhile, Samsung will invest more in the home appliance industry such as fridges and robot vacuum cleaners. This can be seen as their attempt at strengthening their home appliances portfolio that is considerably weak compared to LG’s.

[Part I] On the LG Investment: 3 major reasons why LG loves their Smart TV Alliance
  ·  2013년 01월 09일

In the recent International Consumer Electronics Show (ICES) that was held this Monday, LG expressed their interest in business alliance, namely, a “Smart TV Alliance” by securing new partners. Smart TV Alliance is an industry body complete with involvements from LG Electronics, Philips, Qualcomm, and Toshiba just to name a few.