(left) President Lee Dong-myeon of the KT Convergence Technology Research Institute promoted to president. (right) Vice president Yoon Jong-jin

KT carried out a reshuffle involving a senior executive vice president and higher executives on Dec. 8, promoting President Lee Dong-myeon of the KT Convergence Technology Research Institute to president. 

President Lee, a graduate of Seoul National University’s Electronics Department, obtained a master’s and a doctorate in electric/electronics from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). 

He held such positions as the head of the Technology Strategy Office of the Integrated Technology Research Institute, predecessor of KT Convergence Technology Research Institute, and the president of the Infrastructure Research Institute. 

President Lee’s promotion to president has changed the conventional four-president structure into a six-president format: President Lim Hyun-moon in charge of marking; President Ku Hyun-mo in charge of management support; President Maeng Soo-ho in charge of outside communications; and President Oh Sung-mok in charge of network. KT is giving more weight to the R&D sector with President Lee’s promotion to president, which is designed to give a shot in the arm to the development of the 5G network, GiGA Internet, artificial intelligence technologies. Six others were promoted to senior executive vice president. 

They are Kang Kook-hyun, head of the Marketing Division; Lee Pil-jae, chief of the Marketing Strategy Division-cum GiGA Genie Business Division; Park Yoon-young, head of the Corporate Business Consulting Division; Shin Kwang-suk, head of the Financing Office; Shin Soo-jung, head of the IT Planning Office; and Yoon Jong-jin, head of the Public Relations Office.

KT Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu takes an oath at a session of the National Assembly Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee on Oct. 30. (Photos: KT)

KT, Facebook at Loggerheads in Parliamentary Interpellation Session

KT and Facebook presented conflicting views during a parliamentary interpellation session over who is responsible for barring contacts by Facebook users who subscribe with KT’s rival telecom service providers.

The episode occurred when Facebook Korea Senior Executive Vice President Park Dae-sung, who appeared at a session of the National Assembly Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee on Oct. 13, said Facebook’s barring contacts to its server in Korea was done at the request of KT. 

Park made the remarks in reply from a question by Rep. Byun Jae-il of the Minju Party of Korea during the committee’s session. Facebook diverted the routing by SK Telecom and LG U+ subscribers to foreign services, including one in Hong Kong, instead of the server in Korea late last year and this past February. Facebook has its sole server at KT’s data center in Mok-dong, Seoul. 

Facebook President Cho Yong-beom also told the committee on Oct. 30 that the idea was one of many requests made by KT. 

While attending the session at that time, KT Chairman Hwang Chang-gyu disputed Park’s allegation. 

Hwang said the changing of approach routes at the cache server is Facebook’s authority, and KT had nothing to do with it. 

In a coincidence, Facebook sneakily took steps to restore SK Telecom and LG U+ subscribers’ connection with its service in Korea on Oct. 13 when the National Assembly began an interpellation of the government. The revelation of e-mails between KT and Facebook headquarters in the United States could reveal the truth behind the episode. 

The two companies exchanged e-mails over such issues of using Facebook’s server in Korea. An official with Facebook Korea said Facebook Korea President Cho and Senior Executive Vice President Park replied after reading inside reports on that matter, but Facebook refused to reveal such e-mails, citing problems related to revelations of personal information. 

Naver a Target of Severe Criticism over Parliamentary Audit 

Former Naver Board Chairman Lee Hae-jin became the subject of severe criticism from ruling and opposition party members sitting on the National Assembly National Policy Committee over Naver’s monopoly of the Korean online advertising market on Oct. 30 and Oct. 31. “Naver is blocking Google’s reign over the Internet advertising market,” Lee, now global investment officer (GIO), said Google Korea, is drawing less attention due to its low market share, he testified during his parliamentary hearing. 

Ruling and opposition party members sitting on the committee lashed out at Naver for abusing its monopoly power to control the Korean on-lime advertising market, incurring huge damages to small merchants and consumers.