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To: Jim Willie CB who wrote (71229)	4/26/2000 12:55:00 PM
From: JohnG	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 152472

Jim Willie. Good to see you back. JohnG

To: Jim Willie CB who wrote (71229)	4/26/2000 12:56:00 PM
From: LBstocks	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 152472

Third-generation cell phone closer as IMT-2000 groundwork laid Groundwork for the selection of third generation (3G) mobile telecom service operators is gathering full momentum with the government scheduled to announce the number of licenses and selection procedure in about two months. The first in the line-up of seminars and hearings on 3G services, also known as IMT-2000, will be held next Wednesday. Organized by the Korean Institute of Communication Sciences, the symposium will feature a panel of discussants including Ministry of Information and Communication officials and representatives of telecom operators, equipment manufacturers, consortia of small-and-medium sized companies, the academia and research institutes. They will debate standardization issues and operator selection criteria. The country's mobile telecom companies are betting their future business, if not their very viability, on clinching what is often touted as the ultimate in telecom service. The government is expected to award three 3G licenses, and that prospect has four groups competing against each other. Korea Telecom (KT) and its mobile subsidiary KT Freetel are vying for a license, while SK Telecom and Shinsegi Telecomm are pursuing a single license. LG TeleCom which acquired fixed-line operator Dacom, is also a formidable contender for the license, while a Hanaro Telecom-led consortium of Onse Telecom, paging service operators, TRS businesses and PICCA (Promising Information and Communication Companies Association) is vowing to put up a strong fight. Hansol M.com, which is on the bidding block, could go with LG TeleCom or KT, boosting either company's chances at winning a license. IMT-2000 service boasts anytime, anywhere services offering global roaming and multimedia services at high speeds. In Korea, the service is slated to commence in 2002 just in time for the World Cup soccer game following opeator selection at the end of this year. Despite concerns raised by some operators who argue that early introduction of IMT-2000 will require a huge additional investment at a time when they have yet to recoup their investment in IS-95B, the IMT-2000 license is set to be by far this year's most talked about news. A major attraction of the IMT-2000 is its faster speed. In early stages the IMT-2000 will support 384Kbps, as opposed to 144Kbps provided by IS-95C which will evolve from the current IS-95B, the difference in transmission speed will grow larger in later stages. For example, it is estimated that by 2005, IMT-2000 will provide 1Mbps. Based on such projection, if the consumers make their choices simply on technical merits, the uptake of IMT-2000 service in the early phase will be rather slow, only gradually gaining speed. However, another element in the evolution of service is operator marketing strategy which includes handset and service pricing. According to a report by the KISDI (Korea Information Society Development Institute), service operators expect to see IMT-2000 wireless handsets priced around existing wireless handsets. As for the service rates, operators will be compelled to lower their rates in the early stage of commercial deployment, despite additional investments made in equipment and network, to compete with each other as well as the 2G market. The increased data traffic per user expected with IMT-2000 will allow operators to see a revenue increase even without increasing their service rates. In fact, the 3G market will succeed in the long term because of increased data traffic, according to the report. The report pointed out that the global roaming capacity of IMT-2000 may have been overstated as international roaming is now possible through partnerships between operators and the demand for the service is limited to frequent travelers. In fact, the demand for global roaming is expected to make up only a small portion of the overall demand, compared to the demand for wireless Internet or video phone calls, the report predicted. Upgrade from the 2G service will make up most of the demand for mobile telephone service after 2002, as 63 percent of the population is expected to have mobile telephone service. This is close to the saturation point set at 65 percent of the total population. Therefore, very few first-time mobile telecom subscribers will make up IMT-2000 subscribers. Based on the premise that most of IMT-2000 subscribers will be those who switch from 2G services, the market for the 3G service can be calculated based on its competition from existing 2G services. As the technological difference between IMT-2000 and IS-95C, an evolution from 2G, is expected to be small, at least in the early phase, handset costs and calling rates will determine the size of 3G subscribers. Updated: 04/27/2000 by Kim Hoo-ran Staff report koreaherald.co.kr