’Media Big Bang’

Broadcasting and telecommunications industry will likely test-operate 3D-TV

The Korean broadcasting and telecommunications industry is forecast to undergo tremendous changes this year as such watershed events as the inauguration of a new broadcasting network and the test-operation of a 3D-TV system will likely take place in what is called the “Media Big Bang.”
Korea Communications Commission (KCC) Chairman Choi See-jung said in his speech, “Last year was a year for the start of the so-called Media Big Bang (the passage of the media reform bills), and this year will be a year for making the Big Bang situation a success.”
Choi told a New Year’s gathering for the Korea broadcasting and telecommunications industry at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul Jan. 12 a new licensed broadcasting network will be inaugurated and the time for restructuring the 30-year-old broadcasting advertising market is imminent.
The KCC chief said one of the major tasks for this year is the launching of a 3D TV era and the introduction of a full-fledged competition system in the telecommunications sector. The mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) will have a great impact on the market on top of the rezoning of frequencies. MVNOs buy traffic, or wholesale minutes, texts and data from network operators such as SK Telecom and KT, and resell it to their customers under their own mobile service brand.
It was noteworthy that Prime Minister Chung Un-chan, who showed a keen interest in the cultivation of the IT industry, attended this year’s gathering. In his speech, the prime minister expressed wishes for the renaissance of the broadcasting and telecommunications industry during the year of the white tiger. He also said that as the broadcasting and telecommunications industry emerges as one of the growth engine industries and decades-old restrictions that stand in the way of digital integration have been lifted as a result of the revision of media-related acts, efforts should be made to raise its competitiveness and make a leap forward for the advancement of the industry.
Chung Man-won, chairman of the Korea Association of Information & Telecommunication (KAIT) and concurrently chairman of SK Telecom, said in his speech that 2010 should be a year for not just advancing technology, but also transforming all sectors of society and industry, and to this end, the broadcasting and telecommunications industry has to do its best in creating a new world with a strong determination to explore new horizons after overcoming difficulties.
In his speech, Kim In-kyu, CEO of Korea Broadcasting System, predicted that this year would be a year for the occurrence of the so-called Media Big Bang in which advanced convergence technologies will bring about cutthroat competition in terms of terminals and services. He added that the utmost efforts should be made to catapult the broadcasting and telecommunications industry into the global media market as one of the nation’s growth engine industries.
Among approximately 500 participants of the gathering, jointly organized by KAIT and 15 other broadcasting and telecommunications associations, were Prime Minister Chung; Lee Suk-chae, CEO of KT; Lee Sang-chull, vice chairman of LG Telecom; Rep. Na Kyung-won; and Rep. Lee Yong-kyung. nw

KCC Chairman Choi See-jung

Approximately 500 people, including KCC Chairman Choi See-jung, attend a New Year’s reception for the Korean broadcasting and telecommunications industry in Seoul on Jan. 12.