|
SK Telecom will begin offering mobile phone services in the United States. The company said Wednesday it will form a joint venture with Earthlink, one of the biggest Internet providers in the United States. The New York Times reported that the two companies plan to invest US$200 million each into the business.
The joint venture would offer data communication services like cell phone and mobile Internet services through the wireless communication networks of U.S. mobile service providers Sprint and Verizon. For SK, it will be like opening a second version of its "011" service in the U.S.
"The local telecom market has become congested... Entering a developed overseas market will mark a second leap for us," SK chief executive Kim Shin-bae said.
SK Telecom also announced its fourth quarter earnings Wednesday. Last year's total sales recorded W9.7 trillion (US$9.4 billion), a 2 percent increase over last year, the company said. Operating profits, however, fell to W2.36 trillion, a 23 percent drop from 2003, with net profits also down 23 percent at W1.5 trillion. Net profits contracted 3 percent in the fourth quarter.
With the mobile phone market virtually saturated, the wireless Internet sector recorded rapid growth. Wireless Internet sales stood at W1.82 trillion last year, a 38 percent increase from 2003, and the highest level ever recorded by the firm. They surpassed 20 percent of total sales for the first time in the third quarter last year and continued to grow, accounting for 23.9 percent of total sales in the fourth quarter.
(Kim Hee-seop, fireman@chosun.com )
|
