Posted courtesy of The Next Silicon Valley:
The Next Silicon Valley

Korea touts top ten tech trove
By The Next Silicon Valley; Posted on: December 15, 2009 10:28pm

The government of Korea has created a showcase of innovative technology products designed and built in Korea in its latest effort to highlight that country's advances in the global industrial economy.

It's all part of an ambitious government initiative to spur innovation on the back of changes in technology regulations designed to help private companies' competitiveness while supporting a shift toward green energy industries and other promising new knowledge-based global market opportunities.

Often overshadowed by Japan, and more recently China, Korea is a formidable high tech industry competitor where it serves global markets with an array of industrial and consumer goods, including LCD displays, semiconductors, mobile/wireless and information and communication technology (ICT).

It wasn't always that way, with some Korean's able to recall a time when technology once focused on wigs and shoes for the global market.

But today, Korea's innovative products are "now rubbing shoulders with those developed by global giants, while others are the first in their field" according to a report in the English language news site JoongAngDaily.

The top products list, whittled down from over 33 submissions was unveiled by the Korean Ministry of Knowledge Economy this week. It highlighted 10 new Korean technology products released this year, including a high performance gasoline engine developed by Hyundai Motor and a touch-screen system manufactured by Samsung Electronics. The 10 chosen tech products were said to have "The biggest economic potential as the world's first, or best, according to the Ministry.

This initiative is part of a long-term effort by Korea to advance its economy beyond its traditional role as a low-cost manufacturer through a more vertically-integrated approach that allows the higher margins and benefits obtained from both underlying technologies as well as final branded products," commented Keith Rabin, president of KWR International, a consulting firm specializing in Asia-related business development and research.

"While this was difficult in sectors such as electronics and automobiles which were already dominated by US, European and Japanese firms, the ability of firms such as Samsung and Hyundai to move beyond this paradigm is leading to a more concerted push to become leaders in sectors such as renewable energy, smart phones, digital convergence and other areas that are now emerging as likely growth areas moving forward," Rabin observed.

Among the new technologies spotlighted is Hyundai Motor's V8 Tau engine, which the government said is one of the world's top engines in terms of power and fuel economy. The engine is currently installed on Hyundai Motor's Genesis and Equus vehicles.

Two of Samsung Electronics' technologies were selected as well, one of which is its Jet mobile phone, which features advanced image technology. Samsung was also recognized for its eco-friendly, ultra-slim LED TV. The television features an advanced built-in tuner and uses about half of the electricity consumption of a conventional TV.

The Jet Phone is a full-touch mobile smartphone and includes so-called "eco-friendly bio-compostable polylactic acid films by SKC."

Also recognized for excellence were Jusung Engineering's technology of producing thin-film photovoltaic equipment with the world's highest efficiency, Daejoo Electronic Materials' vapor synthesis of magnesium oxide for producing plasma display panels (PDPs) and Hileben, which produces technology to drastically raise the efficiency of silicon-based solar energy-generating modules.

Also at the ceremony, 26 company executives and workers were named as men of national merit.

The government estimated that the show case products generated an estimated 7.1 trillion won ($6.1 billion) in revenue this year and could rake in 11.3 trillion won next year.

Global investors are eyeing developments in Korea very carefully. An industrial powerhouse, South Korea's exports in the information and technology sectors are expected to rise sharply next year as a global economic recovery drives up corporate IT budgets, according to Seeking Alpha, the popular investment website.

It quotes Lee Gam-yeol, vice president of the Korea Electronics Association, forecasting that South Korea's IT and tech exports will amount to US$133 billion next year, "boosted 11.1 percent from this year, with the annual industry production expected to rise 7.7 percent from a year ago to 237 trillion won (US$205.3 billion) in 2009."

Seeking Alpha notes however that some market experts are skeptical about the forecast, including Microsoft's Steve Ballmer, head of the U.S. computer software giant who is on record as having said that due to the global economic downturn corporations will cut back on IT spending and corporations will still maintain tight IT budget in the coming years "regardless of the economic condition."

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