KT Corporation


KT Corporation, formerly Korea Telecom, is a South Korean telecommunications company, mobile network operator and mobile virtual network operator. KT is the third-largest wireless carrier in South Korea, with 13.5 million subscribers as of Q4 2023.
The formerly fully-state-owned firm is South Korea's first telecommunications company and is a major supplier of the local landline and broadband internet market, serving about 90 percent of the country's fixed-line subscribers and 45 percent of high-speed Internet users. After selling its wireless affiliate Korea Mobile Telecom in 1994, KT returned to the wireless market with the creation of PCS carrier KTF in January 1997.
The company's merger with KTF, its wireless subsidiary, in 2009 made it the country's ninth largest chaebol with nearly 24 trillion won in assets as of 2009.
In January 2011, KT launched unified brand "Olleh" for both fixed-line and cellular broadband services. However in 2016, they decided to revert to "KT" for landline and cellular broadband services.

Company overview

Founded in 1981 as a public utility, KT played a major role in Korea's development in the information technology hub sector. KT sold its wireless affiliate in 1994, founding another in 1996 and becoming, along with LG Dacom, one of Korea's earliest Internet service providers. In 2001 KT acquired struggling broadband provider Thrunet, then the largest broadband company in Korea, which paved the way for KT to dominate the broadband market. In 2009, KT merged with its wireless subsidiary KTF, paving the way to the integration of landline and cellular services. Ever since KT introduced the Apple iPhone to South Korea, it has been constantly seeking new business areas, such as media, e-commerce, and global business partnerships. The company has a well-distributed shareholder structure under which the National Pension Service is the largest shareholder, but NPS holds no managerial rights over the company. Under the current shareholder structure, no controlling shareholder exists.

History and milestones

Before privatization

  • December 10, 1981: The company becomes incorporated as KTA.
  • 1984: Tenth in the world to develop the electronic switch TDX-1.
  • 1987: Nationwide automated long-distance network completed.
  • 1991: Company renamed Korea Telecom.
  • 1993: Total of approximately 20 million telephone lines installed, laying groundwork for the emerging information society.
  • 1995: Mugunghwa Satellite No. 1 launched.
  • 1996: Mugunghwa Satellite No. 2 launched.
  • 1996: PCS and CT-2 license acquired. KT Freetel founded.
  • 1997: Status changed from organization which has +50% state funding to one with a state funding of smaller scale.
  • October 1, 1997: The new Public Corporation Business Structure Improvement & Privatization Act applied to KT.
  • 1998: Headquarters relocated from Jongno-gu, Seoul, to Bundang-gu, Gyeonggi Province.
  • December 1998: Newly listed on stock exchange.
  • 1999: Mugunghwa Satellite No. 3 launched.
  • June 2000: Managerial rights of Hansol M.com acquired.
  • December 2000: IMT-2000 license acquired.
  • April 2001: Caller ID service launched.

    After privatization

  • May 2001: Plans for privatization announced. Celebrated 20th anniversary and changed name from Korea Telecom to KT. KT's telephone exchanges restructured into regional branch offices. "Let's" launched as the new company slogan.
  • 2002: Privatization of company finalized.
  • 2002: KT ICOM, the third-generation mobile unit of KT Corp., merges with KT Freetel, the mobile subsidiary of KT Corp., to form a new company opening on March 1, 2003.
  • June 14, 2003: Alcatel Space announced its $148.5 million contract with KT Corp. to build Koreasat 5, South Korea's first civil-military communications satellite.
  • October 1, 2003: KT Corp. cuts 12.6% of its workforce due to stagnant sales and rivalry to save up to $280 million US dollars.
  • October 31, 2003: KT Corp. reports its first quarterly loss in seven years. The severance payments of cutting 12.6% of its workforce played a role in the loss.
  • 2005: According to Fair Trade Commission data, KT as a corporate group that holds 12 subsidiaries and total assets of 29.315 trillion won, ranked 8th among Korea's conglomerates.
  • December 28, 2005: Launched inter-Korean telecommunication services and opened KT branch office in North Korea's Gaesung industrial complex.
  • January 2009: Six days after inauguration as the new Chairman of KT, Suk-Chae Lee announced plans for KT-KTF merger at press conference.
  • March 2009: Received conditional approval from Korea Communications Commission on KT-KTF merger.
  • April 2009: Debut of Qook, a service bundle brand. “Ann” landline phone, “Megapass” broadband and “Mega TV” IPTV services were renamed “Qook Phone,” “Qook Internet” and “Qook TV,” respectively.

    After KT-KTF merger

  • June 1, 2009: KT and its wireless subsidiary KTF merged to form a new unified KT.
  • July 2009: Previous company slogan "All New" replaced with "Olleh Management,"and "Olleh KT" officially launched as the new CI.
  • November 2009: Launch of Qook and Show broadband services.
  • November 2009: Became first local carrier to launch Apple's iPhone in Korean market.
  • December 2009: Launched the first 3W smartphone "Show Omnia" in Korean market.
  • June 2010: Launched "uCloud", a cloud-based storage service.
  • August 2010: Company's internet services relaunched under the name "Olleh" in alignment with company slogan.
  • August 31, 2010: KT included as Dow Jones Sustainability World Index company.
  • September 10, 2010: Launched Apple's iPhone 4 in Korean market and unlimited 3G data plan.
  • November 11–12, 2010: the official telecommunications service provider for the G20 Seoul summit.
  • January 25, 2011: Fixed-line "Qook" and cellular "Show" broadband services were unified under the "Olleh" brand. They were renamed "Olleh Home" and "Olleh Mobile," respectively.
  • February 10, 2011: Acquired 20.05% of BC Card shares, emerging as the second-largest shareholder.
  • January 3, 2012: KT launched its LTE service.
  • September 2012: KT was awarded the Global Supersector Leader for Telecommunications by Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes for two consecutive years.
  • Dec 4, 2013: KT and Docomo's business relationship strengthens as both companies extend the business tie-up to January 2017.
  • 2014: KT's 12 million customers’ data were hacked.
  • 2014: KT and the Rwandan government announced the agreement for the establishment of Rwanda Olleh Services Ltd, a joint venture responsible for providing improved online services.
  • 2015: In late 2015, former KT president Suk-Jae Lee denies the charges of trust and embezzlement allegations.
  • 2016: KT Corp. plans to provide 5G services at the 2018 Winter Olympics held at PyeongChang, South Korea. At the event, KT claims that its wireless platforms would be able to provide service to 250,000 devices at once.
  • 2017: In participation of the government-led programme, KT Corp. opens up 100,000 Wi-Fi hotspots, also known as access points, mostly in subway trains. The government-led programme's aim is to improve access to public Wi-Fi.
  • 2018: KT Corp. announces its plan to invest 23 trillion won into 5G and new telecommunication technologies over the next five years.
  • Sept 2018: KT Corp. launches its 5G Open Lab for testing 5G/IoT-based services which have attracted major corporations such as Samsung, Posco, Hyundai Mobis, Intel, Ericsson, and Nvidia's interest.
  • Nov 2018: KT Corp. commercializes 10 Gbit/s-capable broadband internet service for major cities in South Korea, including Seoul, Daegu, and Busan.
  • February 25, 2019: A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by KT Corp. and Nokia to test 5G technologies such as NFV and network slicing.
  • March 25, 2019: KT Corp. signs a 5G commercial contract with Ericsson that will enable all South Korean residents to purchase 5G services starting April 2019.
  • May 3, 2019: KT Corp. and Samsung Electronics have signed a deal to supply public safety network solutions to ten major South Korean cities by 2020.
  • 2020: At the SatelliteAsia 2020 exposition, the satellite-operating division of KT presented the world's first satellite-5G hybrid router transmission technology.
  • 2021: KT Corp. becomes first in South Korea to commercialize 5G standalone technology reports ZDNet. This new 5G standalone technology will help reduce power and latency consumption for users. KT Corp. acquires, a South Korean telecommunications company.
  • 2024: KT to supply US$450 mln worth of network infrastructure to Microsoft

    Corporate governance

KT's Board of Directors consists of three non-independent directors and eight outside directors, totalling eleven directors as of March 2012. The outside directors are nominated by the Outside Director Nomination Committee based on their expertise and business leadership, and hold office for less than three years. The BOD chairman is selected from among the outside directors and serves for a one-year term. The BOD consists of five standing subcommittees and two ad hoc subcommittees. If required, additional sub-committees may be set up. The current internal directors are Chang-Gyu Hwang, Hyeon-myung Pyo and Il-yung Kim, and the external directors are Eung Han Kim, Chun-Ho Lee, Hyun-nak Lee, Byong-won Bahk, Keuk-je Sung, Sang-Kyun Cha, Do-Kyun Song.

Services

Wireless

As of 2012 KT customers can receive the services on any of radio frequency band assigned, one or more of radio interfaces.
frequency rangeFrequency
band		Frequency
width
GenerationRadio interfaceLicenseNotes
850 MHz 262x53.9G/4GLTE/LTE-A50 billion won, for 10 years
900 MHz 82x103.9G/4GLTE/LTE-A
1800 MHz 3353.9G/4GLTE/LTE-A
2100 MHz 12x203G, 3.5G, 3.9G, 4GUMTS/HSPA+, LTE/LTE-A130 billion won, for 15 years
2300 MHz 303.9GWiBro12.68 billion won, with rural area support,
for 7 years, until Mar 2019
3500 MHz n781005GNR
28 GHz n2578005GNRLicense revoked.