Seoul pushing for domestic production of CDMA parts
koreaherald.co.kr
Updated: 07/07/2000
by Kim Hoo-ran Staff reporter, Korea Herald
The government is pushing to have all the parts that are used in CDMA (code division multiple access) wireless handsets and ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line) systems produced domestically.
Announcing the plan, which envisions 100 percent domestic production of CDMA and ADSL parts by the end of next June, the Ministry of Information and Communication said it was prompted to take action by the steep increase in parts for mobile communication devices which are taking a heavy toll on the nation's trade balance.
The plan, which follows closely on the heels of the government-placed ban on handset subsidies, a move made to contain the dollar drain on imported CDMA parts, would encourage equipment manufacturers and parts suppliers to work closely to ensure that more domestically developed parts are employed in the end-products.
Korean makers of CDMA handsets have relied completely on Qualcomm for core chipsets. But chipsets have been developed locally, and a significant portion of other parts are made here, including liquid crystal displays (LCD) and printed circuit boards (PCB). "In fact, some 71 percent of the parts are made locally now," said a ministry official.
To further cut down on imported parts, Samsung SDI and LG Chemical are expected to obtain the capacity to produce 4 million cells per month within the year, essentially substituting all battery imports. Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Electronics Industries (HEI) are working on developing flash memory chips and SMBs (small and medium businesses) are engaged in producing antennas and some repeater parts, according to the ministry. "We expect to have all of CDMA handset parts made domestically by next June," said the official.
ADSL equipment has not yet established a firm domestic production base, with about 45 percent of the parts being produced in the country. Manufacturers rely on imports almost exclusively for modem chipsets and central processing units (CPUs).
However, Samsung Electronics was able to export some parts of ADSL modem chipsets to the United States and Taiwan last month. Complete chipsets should be developed by the end of the year and should be available to equipment manufacturers next January, the ministry predicted.
The rest of the parts should be developed by next June, allowing complete ADSL equipment to be made using domestically produced parts.
Meanwhile, exports of wireless telecom equipment, including CDMA handsets and systems and GSM handsets, in the first four months of the year recorded 2.08 billion dollars, while imports of parts stood at $1.14 billion. |
