The Three Major Telecom Companies Jointly Build Apartment Internet Communication Facilities

KT, SK Broadband, and LG Uplus Joint Construction

KT employees are inspecting communication facilities installed on the rooftop of Apartment Complex 9 in Mokdong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] KT announced on the 24th that it will jointly build and provide apartment internet communication facilities together with SK Broadband and LG Uplus.

The telecom companies have been improving internet speeds in aging apartments by utilizing multiple UTP cables. Since 2015, they have developed a messenger wire method that directly lays optical fiber cables on apartment exterior walls and have applied it to some apartments. However, the method using UTP cables had limitations in the range of speed improvement, and the messenger wire method took a long time to install, causing frequent complaints and issues with construction costs.

To solve these problems, KT proposed joint construction of messenger wires to SK Broadband and LG Uplus. Since the end of April, the three telecom companies have officially started joint construction of messenger wires, and joint construction has been completed in five apartments in the metropolitan area, including Mokdong 9 Complex in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul.

For newly built apartments, the three telecom companies are integrating equipment racks installed in communication rooms. Previously, each telecom company installed separate equipment racks, which caused the communication room space to become cramped and made facility maintenance difficult for apartment management offices. Currently, the three telecom companies have completed the application of integrated racks in 100 newly built apartments nationwide.

A resident living in Mokdong 9 Complex apartment said, “Previously, I used internet with a speed of 100Mbps, but now I can use gigabit-level internet,” and added, “The apartment’s appearance has also greatly improved, so I am satisfied.”

Jung Jeong-su, Executive Director of KT Gangnam Western Metropolitan Headquarters, said, “Through the cooperation of the three telecom companies, we expect to provide customers with better quality communication services.”