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iPhone Launching Big in South Korea

Of course the one issue that not many people seem to be talking about is the limitation of the app store in Korea. I had no idea that the iTunes store was not one global store; but I assume a lot of media is only licensed for specific areas so need to make separate stores for each country.

The Korean iTunes store only has apps... and a lot of the apps available in the U.S. store are not in the Korean store. I hope with the iPhone being released more apps will get licensed here in Korea.
 
ArtOfWarfare said:
Does the TV watching actually require any different hardware?

I was under the impression the only thing keeping me from watching TV on my iPhone 3GS here in the US was AT&T and their refusal to allow people to do such bandwidth hogging activities. Aren't there a few apps that have been popping up that allow you to stream TV as an easter egg, only to be brought down when apple catches wind?
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Elgato's EyeTV app allows you to watch live TV (you provide your own stream via they Mac EyeTV app.) Version 1.0 worked over 3G, it was made WiFi only in 1.0.1. Don't know if Elgato sell a Mac product compatible with Korean DTV, I know they extensively support Europe (they are a German company).

But anyway, watching live TV streams on a good network is certainly doable, you just need the software.
 
south korean are much richer, they work hard and paid well.
china workers employ by amercian companies work hard but paid peanuts.
iphone cost are too high for most china workers, especially those who work in company selling to walmart.

MacRumors said:


An AP story indicates that the lead up to the iPhone launch in South Korea on Saturday was a much bigger event than the China launch. KT Corp. reported 53,000 iPhone pre-orders prior to the Korean launch day.

These numbers suggest that the iPhone will be sizable competition for local companies such as Samsung and LG. The current smartphone market in South Korea is estimated to be about 400,000 users as of the end of the 3rd quarter, with the full size of the mobile phone market estimated at 47 million units.

The iPhone does have the disadvantage of not supporting some of the localized features that some customers have come to expect. Specifically, the ability to watch live local television is said to be a popular feature on existing Korean phones.

Article Link: iPhone Launching Big in South Korea
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realeric said:
... I wish I were in S. Korea because 16GB 3GS is free :eek: with 2-year commitment of $82/m plan.
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In the UK you can get the 16GB 3GS from O2 UK on a £45 ($71.48 USD) /mo contract and downgrade after 9 months to £35 /mo ($55.60 USD) for the remainder of the contract. This is what I plan to do. :)
 
Lex Yu said:
The question is "why did it take so long time to certificate Apple? Did Samsung bother it? (Yes they did, actually. We all know it!!)
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Isn't Samsung a major supplier of components to Apple? One might suspect that some arm-twisting at very high levels would take care of these problems.
 
Hmmm...

I was born in NJ and live in South Korea. Localized features? That is a good question. The only localized feature in a Korean market is that the commodity be Korean, whether it be rice, autos, or phones.
Sure, people here watch TV on their phones, and will miss it on the iPhone, but the bigger issue is that this a top-down culture dictated by local chaebol that have been pitching mediocre product on an intelligent but hapless public for years. Active-X dependence has locked software use here for almost a decade, and a device like the iPhone which relies on an OS more than hardware (local phones are undoubtedly more 'capable') is an alien concept.
The (cutely) grass-roots notion of an App store is alien to an Asian culture accustomed to being shilled garbage by inept leadership.
And by the way, after some makkeoli at lunch yesterday I went to a store and attempted to purchase an iPhone. Without even asking about my visa status they adamantly said "no".
People just don't realize how different Korea is, south and north. That's why the product did not exist here. At least they were 'ahead' of Iceland.
 
Dude, nobody here knows what chaebol and makkeoli are (you drink makkeoli??) :p


What I want to know is if I can get my 3G from the US easily activated now that the iPhone is out here.
 
Has anyone got their iPhone yet or know when they're getting it?

I've ordered mine online but they haven't given any dispatch date. They just said "probably this week". Great.
 
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