Under the theme “Beyond IT,” the World IT Show (WIS) 2012, the nation’s largest ICT exhibition, showcased the latest ICT gadgets and technologies during a four-day run from May 15-18 at COEX in Samseong-dong  Seoul. 

Organized and hosted by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, the Korea Comm-unications Commission (KCC), the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, WIS 2012 attracted scores of Korean and foreign ICT players, including Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, SK Telecom, KT, Nokia, Siemens, and Qualcomm. 

Among the highlights of WIS 2012 were Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics’ showdown over the so-called smart TV war. The Korean home appliance makers strutted their stuff with their latest smart TV versions°™ OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) smart TVs°™ at the last international exhibition prior to the 2012 London Summer Olympic Games. Samsung Electronics unveiled its first OLED TV set slated for mass production at the Samsung Electronics headquarters in the second week of May. LG Electronics will start mass-production of its OLED smart TVs soon.

Korean and foreign VIPs, including ministers and vice ministers from the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia, toured many Korean pavilions, including the one run by the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), to take a look at the latest ICT technologies and products. 

ETRI displayed a homegrown middleware for interworking defense weapon systems on ships and tanks. ETRI has succeeded in localizing the communications software for interworking defense weapon systems for which the nation has so far turned to foreign imports. Currently, U.S.-made products account for more than 80 percent of the global middleware market. 

Korean telecom providers, including SK Telecom and KT, created a buzz with their Long Term Evolution (LTE) services. The three Korean telecom providers, which have already built nationwide fourth-generation LTE networks, are now turning to the construction of the voice over LTE (VoLTE) network integrating voice calls and LTE.

Korea Industrial Complex Corp. opened a joint pavilion for eight companies from the mini-cluster of the Guro digital complex GValley. They included ABI Systems, which displayed lighting control systems and switches, and Mamiel, which exhibited LED stands and door locks. 

WIS 2012 displayed “Evil’s Truck,” a vehicle designed to publicize Diablo III, a dark fantasy/horror-themed action role-playing game by Blizzard Entertainment, which made its global debut recently.

The exhibition also coincided with the Seoul International 3D Fair in which Hong Kong veteran director Tsui Hark of “Flying Swords of Dragon Gate,” the winner of the best visual effects award winner of the 6th Asian Film Awards, participated, as well as the 8th Korea Communications Conference.

The fair attracted roughly 168,000 spectators. On the final day on May 18, a throng of spectators began to stream into the exhibition from 9 a.m., prior to opening hours. WIS 2012 drew about 57,000 visitors on that day, many including school students and families. 

WIS 2012 was divided into five categories °™ mobile/communications/broadcasting, cloud computing/smartwork, software/digital content, IT convergence, and industrial electronics.   The 8th Korea Communications Conference took place at the Grand Ballroom of COEX from May 15-16 with the goal of reviewing the promotion of communications with foreign governments and international organizations, and providing insightful information concerning the role and vision of communications and the current situation of the global economy under the theme “Smart Communications; Revolution and Evolution.”

KCC Chairman Lee Kye-cheol participated in the opening ceremony of the conference. There were also keynote speeches, including ones delivered by KT CEO Lee Suk-chae on the topic “The Future of Smart Convergence and New Opportunities,” and Nokia Siemens Networks CEO Rajeev Suri titled “Beyond Conn-ectivity!”