A Case of Missing Global Trends by Sticking to Indigenous Proprietary Technology
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-sun] There are numerous examples of technologies that became Galapagosized by ignoring global standards and insisting on domestic indigenous and proprietary technologies, falling behind in the standards competition with countries worldwide. Technologies such as WIPI, Wibro, and Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) followed in the footsteps of Japan's electronics industry, which collapsed due to failure to adapt to global trends.
Leading Global Technology Standards, Tarnished by Failure
In 2002, the Korean-style wireless internet platform WIPI was developed as a government policy project. WIPI was created to overcome the difficulty of content compatibility caused by domestic mobile carriers using different platforms for wireless internet, which forced users to use only the wireless platform of their subscribed carrier. The government had ambitious plans to reduce waste and lead global technology standards through WIPI. However, due to a lack of follow-up policies and failure to grow properly in line with technological development trends, it left behind the stigma of 'failure' attached to its name.
Wibro (portable internet) is a technology first developed by Korea and incorporated into international standards. Wibro is a technology that complements the mobility of wired high-speed internet and wireless LAN to provide wireless internet services exceeding 1 Mbps in urban areas. The Korea Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Samsung Electronics, KT, and SK Telecom participated and succeeded in development on November 27, 2004. The Wibro technology was approved as a global standard by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in December 2005. This was a remarkable achievement amid global competition for leadership in mobile communication technology after 3G. Initially, Wibro was evaluated as a superior technology in terms of mobility, speed, and price, but its presence rapidly diminished after the emergence of Long-Term Evolution (LTE). During the five years of Wibro commercialization in Korea, KT and SKT recruited only 500,000 subscribers. The government stubbornly pushed forward, even considering the selection of a fourth mobile carrier, but ultimately declared the abandonment of Wibro in 2013.
Leading World-Class, Not Korean-Style, Technologies
The indigenous mobile broadcasting service DMB is no different. DMB is a service that uses digital broadcasting technology to receive TV, video, radio, and text broadcasts while on the move. In 2003, ETRI led a joint industry-academia-research institute project, and in September 2004, Samsung Electronics developed the world's first terrestrial DMB receiver in the form of a PDA, followed by LG Electronics developing the world's first terrestrial DMB phone in November. On December 1, 2005, broadcasting began centered on the Seoul metropolitan area, conducting the world's first terrestrial DMB test broadcast, and commercial service started in January the following year. However, it failed to secure profitability and lost its way as it could not keep up with smartphone resolutions, eventually fading away.
An industry insider said, "Since telecommunication services themselves are most important in connecting with countries worldwide, participating in standard-setting and reflecting it in related industries is crucial. While the idea of global standardization of indigenous technology sounds good, if a new technology with technical superiority or compatibility establishes itself as a global standard, we must quickly catch up and focus investments to lead related technologies. This is the only way to prevent Korea from becoming Galapagosized."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
