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T
HE
I
NTERNET HAS
become an important central medium
affecting all the people around the world in their daily lives.
It is a remarkable progress, considering the Internet was
merely an objective to exchange information in the early days.
Having recognized early on that the Internet would become a
groundbreaking innovation in the 21st century, Korea actively
established a broadband infrastructure in the mid 1990s, and the
Government’s constant information and communication tech-
nology (ICT) promotion policies (e.g. CYBER KOREA 21, e-Korea
VISION 2006, Broadband IT KOREA VISION 2007) played a
crucial role in building Korea as a global ICT leader.
As of June 2005, 72 per cent of Korean people are connected
to the Internet, and the number of high-speed Internet subscribers
has already passed the 12 million mark, which is the world’s
highest broadband subscription rate.
This high rate of broadband penetration, with the rapid devel-
opment of digital technology, has accelerated the growth of ICT
infrastructures. High-speed Internet services are an everyday reality
almost anywhere in Korea, and its combination of ICT with a world-
leading network infrastructure has made it possible to produce
semiconductors, mobile phones, TFT-LCDs, digital televisions, and
Internet games – all of which have topped the world market.
How Korea became an ICT leader – ICT development
strategies
There were several factors behind the success of Korea’s informa-
tization drive. The Korean Government was very active in
providing a relevant legal framework (e.g. the Framework Act on
Informatization Promotion, Act on Internet Addresses Resources,
Act on Promotion of Utilization of Information and
Communications Network, etc.) for the promotion of national
informatization. Competition was encouraged in the ICT services
market and heavy investment was made to develop infrastruc-
tures, ICT technologies, a variety of content, and application
software. As a result, a virtuous circle was created for the devel-
opment of informatization and the ICT industry. Furthermore,
the Korean Government has offered free Internet and computer
training courses for equal access to information for ten million
people. The private sector has played an equally critical role, as
telecoms companies invested heavily to deploy broadband
networks and aggressively offered a wide range of high quality
ICT services at a competitive price.
Korea’s unique environmental background also contributed to
the spread of informatization. Densely populated residential areas
of Korea are conducive to the more cost-effective deployment of
ICT infrastructure, and large technology-savvy consumer group
helped the rapid deployment of the Internet and a variety of digital
content.
The goal of these strategies was to make Korea an ICT-advanced
society, and the ICT industry has emerged as a growth engine of
the Korean economy. However, instead of being complacent about
past success mainly in ICT infrastructure and ICT products, Korea
is preparing for another take-off, this time to create a ‘ubiquitous
society’ by implementing the ‘IT 8.3.9 Strategy.’
Korea: connecting people to the digital world
Dr. Song Kwan-Ho, President, National Internet Development Agency of Korea
5.000
2000
No. of Internet users (Unit: 1000 persons)
Rate of Internet users %
10.000
15.000
20.000
25.000
30.000
35.000
10
0
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
45%
19.040
24.380
26.270
29.220
31.580
32.570
57%
58%
66%
70%
72%
Source: NIDA (June. 2005)
Number of Internet users and rates in Korea