Discussion on Public-Private Cooperation Measures to Lead the UAM Business
Synergy between SKT Infrastructure & Service Operation Capabilities and Korea Transport Institute Research & Analysis
[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] SK Telecom and the Korea Transport Institute are strengthening cooperation to lead the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) industry.
SK Telecom announced on the 25th that it held a seminar for UAM cooperation with the Korea Transport Institute at the SK Telecom headquarters building on the afternoon of the 24th. The seminar was attended by key executives from both sides, including SK Telecom CEO Yoo Young-sang and Korea Transport Institute President Oh Jae-hak.
UAM is a transportation service that flies electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (e-VTOL) over urban areas covering distances of 30 to 50 km. In South Korea, commercialization is targeted for 2025.
At this seminar, SK Telecom presented the current status and plans for the UAM business, while the Korea Transport Institute presented the directions for domestic and international UAM institutionalization and utilization plans, discussing future collaboration directions. Both parties agreed that comprehensive strategies such as accurate and scientific market analysis and discovering business models linking private and public sectors are necessary to activate UAM services.
Furthermore, SK Telecom plans to create synergy in the UAM business field by linking its mobile communication operation capabilities and various ICT services-based Connected Intelligence with the Korea Transport Institute’s research and analysis capabilities.
SK Telecom is promoting businesses to provide services such as UAM reservation and boarding, communication between ground and aircraft, internal infotainment, and platforms that connect ground transportation and UAM usage. The Korea Transport Institute is conducting research on UAM’s transportation demand, incurred costs, and appropriate traffic flow through economic analysis. Based on this, they plan to identify the optimal service timing and boarding platform (Vertiport) locations, and derive service benefits such as reductions in air pollution, traffic accidents, and vehicle noise.
SK Telecom and the Korea Transport Institute will also discover services where private companies and public institutions can collaborate in fields such as tourism and disaster/emergency response, and conduct research to select optimal Vertiport locations based on SK Telecom’s communication and ICT business know-how.
Yoo Young-sang, CEO of SK Telecom, stated, “Based on our experience in building and managing advanced digital infrastructure and accumulated Connected Intelligence, we will collaborate with the Korea Transport Institute to become a UAM service provider optimized for future urban environments.”
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