Smart Grid Projections for Asia

One of the obvious ways in which ICT can contribute to green growth is through the installation of a smart grid.   A new estimate suggests that smart grid investment in Asia is expected to reach $171.3 billion by 2017, up from $11.9 billion this year.  As NewNet notes, Korea is seeking to leverage its technology leadership in the IT and communications space to form an advanced smart grid infrastructure within the country, as well as an opportunity to export smart grid technologies around the world..

Korean Job-seekers Prefer Google and Apple

Barely a year and a half after the entry of Apple's iPhone into the Korean market, and the ensuing "smart-phone shock," The Korea Herald reports that Korean-job seekers name Google and Apple as the top two companies they'd like to work for.
According to the latest survey of 1,428 job seekers by SaraminHR Co., 16.7 percent of the respondents selected Google Korea as the most desired company to work at among foreign firms, citing the company’s corporate culture and work environment. It marked the third year in a row that Google Korea claimed the top spot, according to the operator of the job search Web portal.

Apple Korea retained its runner-up position for the second year, winning votes from 10 percent of those surveyed. The respondents said that Apple’s reputation and corporate image are the reasons they want to work for the maker of the iPhone and the iPad.

Apple made the list of the top 10 most popular foreign companies for the first time in 2010, following the iPhone’s local debut. The two U.S. tech giants were the only technology firms to make the annual list this year, reflecting their ascent in Korea with its strong acceptance of smartphones.

Korea To Boost Near Field Communication and Pay-by-phone services

Last week, as reported by Reuters and other media, the Korea Communications Commission announced it would require mobile phone vendors to equip all smartphones with near field communication (NFC) technology, which allows wireless data exchanges at short range, letting people pay for goods, store electronic tickets, collect coupons by swiping a cell phone at a checkout or scanning tags on movie posters.

So far, only two NFC-enabled handsets have been offered in South Korea -- Samsung's Galaxy S II and Pantech's Vega Racer -- and a lack of standardised settlement checkouts at retailers, and disagreements over fee-sharing structure and controlling customer information have prevented the industry from taking off.

The commission said mobile operators and credit card firms had agreed to install or upgrade checkouts with NFC processing technology in retailers, fast food outlets, coffee chains and petrol stations, while card companies were offering discounts to customers using mobile payment services to promote the industry.

"Mobile payment technology has been available since early 2000 but it failed to take off for various reasons ... but today's agreement is a small step toward mutual growth going forward," the head of the Korea Communications Commission said in a statement.