Korea Surpasses 20 Million Smartphone Users in October
Korea Surpasses 20 Million Smartphone Users in October
2011.10.26
COUNT 2034
| In late October, Korea surpassed 20 million smart phone users stated the Korea Communications Commission. This mark come almost 2 years after the Apple iPhone was first introduced in Korea, more than 6 months later than in other countries around the world. Back in March of this year, Korea surpassed the 10 million users mark and now just over 6 months later, the size of the smart phone market has doubled giving it one of the fastest growing smartphone rates anywhere in the world. To put that number in perspective, it means that four out of every 10 mobile phone users in Korea have opted for smartphones and that almost all of the 25 million economically active people in the country use these devices, according to the Korea Communications Commission (KCC). Lee Sang-hak, communications policy planning director at the KCC predicted, "With the current pace, we believe Korea || chr(39) || || chr(39) || s smartphone penetration will be the world || chr(39) || || chr(39) || s No. 1 by the end of 2012." As for the demographics of the typical smart phone users, it has changed as initially men in their 20s and 30s were the dominant users, but now men and women make up around half each and that the smartphone penetration rate is similar for all age groups. It connects people to the world: With the palm-sized device alone, people can obtain information, perform work, socialize and enjoy leisure activities, the country || chr(39) || || chr(39) || s telecom regulator said. Additionally, it has emerged as a venue for a public forum, especially duringelectiontimes. From an economic perspective, smartphones have cut costs and boosted efficiency of corporations. Lines have also blurred among industries as more and more businesses, such as those in finance,retail and service, seek to merge their operations with technology firms. However, not everything is all good as there are some negative side effects. Some of these include, data traffic surging more than 20 times since November 2009. In addition, dropped calls and bad connections are something that comes with the territory of high smart phone usage. The Economist has recently said that Korea is the "world || chr(39) || || chr(39) || s most data-hungry country."  |