IT’s Spring Breeze, `Light and Shadow`

Korea’s Information Technology (IT) industry, which experienced both `heaven and hell` in a short amount of time, is rising again. In contrast with the IT boom after 1999, which had a strong trend of overheated financial technology, recent recovery of IT business is much more sound.

The most visible feature, especially, is improved exports. Including Korean cellular phones that are widely spread globally, high-speed Internet equipments, MP3 players, and Set-Top boxes are rapidly increasing in number for exporting. Although their sizes may be small, venture enterprises are contributing to great extent with their new ideas.

Dot.com enterprises, which recently experienced intense hardships, are also improving in profitability. Investment funds also have begun to flow into IT-related venture enterprises. Enterprises of network equipments like Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) are actively advancing overseas.

Extended demands of `post PC` information devices, such as mobile phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and Smart Phones, are inducing demands for memory chips, which are expected to add positive effects in the domestic semiconductor industry.

IT’s `new spring` is certainly encouraging. However, where there is light, there is shadow. Besides, as things work out well, there are more tasks and weaknesses to be dealt with.

The domestic IT industry’s inferiority in software business, which creates the highest added value, is pointed out as problematic. Influences of Microsoft in the U.S. market have more meaning than to merely have made Bill Gates a celebrity.

Another task is to research how IT-infra and commercializing techniques can be sold in the world market. It is noticeable that Japan’s mobile communication enterprise, NTT Docomo, set `i-mode` at the head of the globalization-strategy, in order to gain control over wireless Internet’s technique standardization and the service market.

What must be remembered, above all, is that `repeated mistakes` have to be avoided. Especially, the government and corporations should look at IT in terms of general industry, rather than mere financial technology. Now is the time for healthy `fusion of IT and production industries`, which will increase general economy’s strength in international competitions.

Previous failure of `IT bubbles`, which ignored technical development or general linkage with the economy to focus only on attracting funds and puffing up stocks, must not be repeated.