Telecommunications for the ‘New Korea’

Abstract

In terms of trade in telecommunications, South Korea is the largest of the East Asian ‘tigers’ and, in certain key sectors, has made its presence felt around the world. As with virtually all other Asian nations but Japan, its experience with modern telecommunications is a relatively recent development. The prospect of national reunification suggests that Korea—North and South—will play a unique and strong role in regional and international telecommunications. Yet Korea is, arguably, the least understood of the Asian tigers. It lacks the British colonial legacy of Singapore or Hong Kong. In contrast to them and to Taiwan it is culturally and politically distinct from China, which has historically acted as a magnet for outside attention. This article offers a corrective to the ingrained tendency to treat Korea simply as another Asian tiger, or to group it with other Asian nations. It looks at how Korea is coping with some of the major telecommunications policy issues facing other countries in the region and...