World`s Best Technology of CDMA

Korea is rapidly becoming the leading country in the international mobile phone market.

The Motorola, the world`s leading communication company, chose the Pantech of Korea as the next generation leader in the international market, because it recognized the competitiveness of the Korean products. Especially, the Pantech is expected to be the world`s top company with its ability for mass production by supplying 5 million units of a single model for one year.

The Korean mobile phone industry has grown rapidly for the past 4-5 years, and its booming stage will continue in the future. If China begins the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) service from October this year, the phone companies should be working even through the night, expected the mobile phone business circles.

The domestic mobile phone manufacturing companies are especially expanding to the Gobal System for Mobile Communications (GSM) market which the European countries have used as well as the CDMA market. According to the Ministry of Information and Communication, the exports of the domestic companies exceeded 1.5 trillion won, including 967.5 billion won of CDMA and 609.7 billion won of GSM in the first quarter of this year.

The Samsung Electronics Co., the world`s fifth largest company in the market share of the mobile phone, has grown to the world`s top brand in the CDMA market, and has actively advanced into the GSM market. The Samsung is expected to enter the top-3 in the world by the expansion of the CDMA market to the U.S., the Central and South America, and Australia, and the successful advancement to the GSM market. The Samsung has acquired the market share of 6.3 percent by selling 6.12 million units in the first quarter, which is challenging the Erisson and the Siemens. It estimates the exports of 22 million units among 28 million units which will be sold this year.

The LG Electronics Co. recorded the sales of $0.14 billion with in Brazil only last year, and has expanded the market to Indonesia, Russia, etc.. With the export of the GSM products to Russia, the LG plans to actively advance to the Europe market.

The Telson Electronics Co. begins its production of the Nokia mobile phone this month, and is expected to achieve the large-scale growth and the improvement of the profitability from the third quarter of this year. The Telson will continue in partnership with Nokia, the world`s No. 1 company for 2 or 3 more years, and it is expected to increase the exports with the successful performance in the Chinese market.

The Pantech made contracts of 500,000 GSM units for one year respectively with the TCL Communication Ltd. and the Dacian of China before entering into a contract with the Motorola. By these contracts, the Pantech can export at least 1 million of a single model product to the Chinese market.

The Sewon Telecom will export 1.5 million GSM phones amounting to $0.25 billion this year, according to the last year`s contract with the Ningbo Bird Co. of China.

And The Maxon Telecom also made a contract of $2.7 million with the Shintom of Japan

to export the manufacturing technology of the GPRS which is the 2.5 generation service of the GSM.

freewill@donga.com