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Samsung, LG locked in OLED battle
A legal battle between Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics is getting fiercer. The conflict focuses on the intellectual property of a variety of products and technologies ranging from refrigerators to the futuristic organic light emitting diode (OLED) televisions. Leading the LG charge is Koo Bon-joon, LG Electronics CEO and brother…
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4-river project a failure: audit
An audit of President Lee Myung-bak’s signature four-river project found it was poorly executed and that as a result water quality of the rivers may have been worsened. Unveiling the results of its investigation Thursday, the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) voiced concern that the project would require the…
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West Asia
[Novel] The Road to Shamawes ①
*Editor’s note: We start to carry “The road to Shamawes,” a novel written by Egyptian novelist Ashraf Aboul-Yazid, in series. The novel was originally written in Arabic, and translated into Korean and English. The novelist, now working as a journalist in Kuwait, also serves as the editor of the Arabic version of The AsiaN. Shamawes…
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Retooling government
What matters are not organizations but their operations Restructuring the government has become one of the traditional tasks of newly-elected leaders in Korea. Park Geun-hye is no exception. There may be little wrong with the organizational reboot ― why not put new wine into new bottles? ― except Korea is…
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East Asia
Korea’s Japanese problem
Just a few days before Park Geun-hye was elected as the new Korean president, Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in Japan. That event could have a major impact on Park’s administration over the next five years. The state of Korean-Japanese relations might even overshadow…
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East Asia
KTO gets big deal with Amway China
25,000 Chinese to be on Korean tour next year The state-run Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) said Wednesday that it has succeeded in attracting 25,000 Chinese tourists as part of an Amway China incentive tour. The Chinese corporation of the American direct-sales company has decided to send groups of employees to…
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East Asia
Historic values of Baekje-era fortress
On New Year’s Day 1997, an event took place in Pungnap-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, which changed the understanding of Korea’s history. In the summer of 1925, heavy rain caused the Han River to flood. After the waters subsided, various historical artifacts were uncovered in the area. Thanks to the effects of…
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East Asia
US warns NK against nuke test
The United States’ top envoy for East Asia affairs warned North Korea, Wednesday, against further provocations amid concerns Pyongyang could conduct a third nuclear test. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who paid a visit to President-elect Park Geun-hye, told reporters that Washington was “very clear on our position…
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East Asia
Culture veteran to hold the pansori contest in Paris
A culture veteran is initiating a drive to globally spread Korean traditional music “pansori” by holding a contest in Paris, France, sometime in June. Pansori is a Korean style narrative song, in which a single performer accompanied by a drummer sings a story. Lee In-gweon, CEO of the Sori Art…
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East Asia
Joseon folksy paintings reveal coy culture
The second floor of Gallery Hyundai in central Seoul was exceptionally crowded for the opening day of a new exhibition Tuesday. Visitors queued up to see erotic artwork from the late Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910). What makes these folksy paintings special is that they are works of Kim Hong-do and Shin…
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