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Research and Markets: South Korea Telecommunications Report Q4 2010

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Posted October 27, 2010

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/d67e93/south_korea_teleco) has announced the addition of the "South Korea Telecommunications Report Q4 2010" report to their offering.

South Koreas mobile market attained a customer base of 49.61mn as of June 2010, representing a penetration rate of 101.6%. In H110, the number of subscribers rose by 3.5%, compared to the 3.2% growth seen during H109. This shows that 2010 has seen slightly higher growth, despite a more mature market. What has helped to propel this growth?

The biggest factor contributing to continued strong growth in South Koreas mobile market relates to the supply of discounted price plans. In an effort to encourage the growth of data services, operators have also extended their price plans to include flat-rate data tariffs. This, combined with greater smartphone penetration rates, has meant that 3G has also been increasing as a percentage of the mobile market total. As of June 2010, the authors estimate that there were 38.283mn 3G subscribers, and that this accounted for 77% of the mobile total. As a percentage of the overall mobile market, the number of 3G subscribers will continue to increase. It is possible that, by 2014, 3G will go on to account for 99.4%.

Already, the authors have seen SK Telecom (SKT), the mobile market leader, look beyond 3G as it sees saturation occurring soon. The operator revealed in mid-July 2010 that it is planning to launch its first long-term evolution (LTE) network in 2011. The operator has announced its plans to introduce commercial LTE services in Seoul in 2011 and expand the services to the Seoul metropolitan area and six metropolitan cities in 2012. SKT aims to provide nationwide coverage by 2013.

However, it is not just high-value customers that are expected to contribute to the growth of the mobile market. Soon it is expected that mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) services will make an appearance. KT, South Korea's leading local fixed-line and second largest mobile operator, signed an agreement on August 12 2010 to lease its network to three companies that would introduce MVNO services.

MVNOs could prove to be a real challenge to fixed-line services, which have continued to grow. At the end of June 2010, the authors estimated that there were 25.681mn lines in service, which would represent a quarterly increase from the 25.442mn lines in service during March. The reason for the continued increase, while other markets with mature mobile sectors have reported declines, is due to the uptake of voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services using fixed-lines. South Korea has one of the most mature broadband markets, and using VoIP services such as Skype helps to reduce household expenditure. This increased use of VoIP services via fixed-line has offset the losses suffered in terms of a falling number of public switched telephone network (PSTN) lines.

Meanwhile, the maturity of the telecoms industry alluded to in this report is responsible for driving South Korea up to second position in the Asia Pacific Business Environment Ratings table for Q410, up from third place previously. However, with a composite score of 71.7, it still remains some way behind table leader Japan, with a score of 76.3."

South Korea Telecommunications Report provides industry professionals and strategists, corporate analysts, telecommunication associations, government departments and regulatory bodies with independent forecasts and competitive intelligence on South Korea's telecommunications industry.

Key Topics Covered:

  • Executive Summary
  • SWOT Analysis
  • South Korea Wireline SWOT
  • South Korea Mobile SWOT
  • South Korea Political SWOT
  • South Korea Economic SWOT
  • South Korea Business Environment SWOT
  • Business Environment Ratings
  • Asia
  • South Korea
  • Industry Forecast Scenario
  • Mobile
  • Tables

Companies Mentioned:

  • Cisco Systems
  • KT Corporation
  • SK Telecom
  • SK Broadband

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/d67e93/south_korea_teleco



CONTACT:

Research and Markets
Laura Wood, Senior Manager,
press@researchandmarkets.com
U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907
Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

KEYWORDS:   Asia Pacific  South Korea

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:   Technology  Telecommunications

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