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Special Remote Control Mission Ordered by Samsung Chairman

Special Remote Control Mission Ordered by Samsung Chairman

Posted August. 21, 2002 22:53,   

한국어

Improvement of technology concerning remote controls. It is the topic Chairman Lee popped up for deliberation after he had toured the exhibitions of cutting-edge products held during July at Samsung’s Seoul headquarters and its Suwon branch. During the exhibition, viewers could compare various products.

Chairman Lee reportedly pointed out, “There are too many kinds of electronic products. It is cumbersome to use different remote controls for different products. In addition, the function keys on the panel are too many and complicated.”

One Samsung official explained, “What Chairman directed was to draw our attention to ‘details’ such as remote controls. Details play a decisive role in customers’ decision-making. Nonetheless, they lie outside the scope of the technology development and improvement. The development and improvement has been a field of heated competition for the number one position in the world market.”

The technology for manufacturing remote controls has been a typical example of low technology products in the electronics industry. Due to this stereotype, major domestic and international makers such as LG, Samsung, Sony and GE have relegated the production to small companies on OEM.

Samsung is on high alert against the leak of its new emphasis on remote controls to its domestic and foreign competitions.

But the blueprint for the improvement is for making out user-friendly control panels having less keys and compatibility with various electronic goods such as TV, VCR, DVD, air-conditioning and fans.

To make this happen, Samsung is considering many options. One way is to cut down the number of buttons by applying Sansum’s cutting-edge cellular phone manufacturing technology, and thus displaying menu options on the LCD. Another way is to use TV itself. By manufacturing TV sets in-built with controller functions, customers see menu options on TV and control other electronic goods through the TV. Samsung also considers adjustment of ultra-red frequencies for different products.

In the meanwhile, on August 21, 2002, the US Bartel Research Institute counted a multi-functioning remote control operating numerous products and heating & air-conditioning systems as the number device which can tremendously improve the quality of life in ordinary households.

In the past, Lee contributed to the birth of “Myungpoom Plus One” TV sets, which are famous for its ad copy “Hidden 1 inch found.” In 1995, Lee noticed that when re-projecting onto the TV screen the picture broadcast by media stations, each side of the picture is cut by 8 mm on TV. Thus he ordered the solution and the solution led to the birth.



Joong-Hyun Park sanjuck@donga.com