JULY COVERAGE SCHEDULE
- Morgan Wright, Chief Security Advisor at SentinelOne: "Digital Defenses for Medical Databases"
- Doug Milburn, Founder of 45Drives: "Demicrosoftification: A New Paradigm in Enterprise Computing"
- Emanuel Pastreich, President of the Asia Institute: "Miracle in Ulaanbaatar"
- Jin Hyung Kim, Emeritus Professor at KAIST: "Democratizing AI: Innovation for Everyone”
- Layne Hartsell, PhD, and Alexander Krabbe, MD: The essay "War in Eurasia"
- Eric Jaremalm, CEO of Midsummer: "The virgin market for industrial thin-film solar roofs"
By Hyoung Joong Kim,
Chair Professor of Digital Finance Management at Hoseo University.
In 2004, the year in which Korea IT Times was established, Facebook was founded in the United States. In the same year, Cyworld experienced a notable surge in popularity in Korea. The advent of the Internet led to the formation of online communities that incorporated multimedia elements, which proved to be a significant development in the field of digital communication.
In 2005, YouTube was established. The video-sharing platform began to gain significant traction, and Google recognized its potential, acquiring it for $1.65 billion in 2006.
In 2007, Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone, which marked a pivotal moment in technological history when a compact mobile device transformed into a portable computer. Many companies that failed to anticipate the advent of the smartphone era subsequently ceased operations within a few years.
In 2008, the government of Lee Myung-bak abolished the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Information and Communication. Consequently, the science and technology sectors were incorporated into the Ministry of Education, resulting in the formation of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. Meanwhile, the functions of the Ministry of Information and Communication were divided and transferred to the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korea Communications Commission, and the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, respectively.
Bitcoin mining began at the beginning of 2009. The genesis of the transformation of currency into computational devices occurred at this time. On July 7, a massive distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack occurred in South Korea. The government has designated July 7 as Information Security Day, commemorating the date annually since 2012. It is a legal holiday.
In that same year, KEPCO was awarded a contract to construct a nuclear power plant in the UAE. In 2012, KEPCO held a groundbreaking ceremony for the technologically advanced nuclear power plant, which commenced full-scale power generation in 2022.
In 2010, Kakao emerged and proceeded to become a dominant force in the Korean market, while LG Uplus was established that same year. Telecommunications companies, spearheaded by SK Telecom, introduced unlimited data plans.
In 2011, the Personal Information Protection Act was enacted by the National Assembly. The general public has a strong perception that this legislation has impeded the growth of South Korea's big data industry.
In 2013, Korbit, the first cryptocurrency exchange in South Korea, was established. In 2017, Upbit was established, and within a few months, it surpassed Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit to become a global exchange.
In 2014, as the controversy over "Cheon Song Yi's Coats" arose, there was a growing call to abolish the accredited certificate. In 2020, the term "public certificate" was removed and replaced with "joint certificate."
In that same year, there were significant data breaches at KB Kookmin, NH Nonghyup, and Lotte Card. In the wake of this incident, executives and employees, including CEOs of financial institutions, have stepped down to assume responsibility.
In 2015, Ethereum started to be mined. Those who participated in the Ethereum ICO in 2014 sat on a golden egg. Meanwhile, Ethereum has established itself as the backbone of the cryptocurrency world.
In 2016, South Korea's first internet banks, Kbank and Kakao Bank, were established. A third, Toss Bank, was founded in 2020.
As the price of Bitcoin skyrocketed, South Korea's Justice Minister Park Sang-ki warned of tougher regulations that could shut down cryptocurrency exchanges. His announcement that day is known as Park's Riot. From that day on, the price of Bitcoin began to decline.
In 2020, BTS's new song Life Goes On topped the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and the Korean film Parasite swept the Academy Awards, winning four awards including Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Screenplay. This proved that the Korean Wave was not an illusion.
In 2021, Korean company Coupang went public on the NYSE. This gave hope to Korean startups. However, only a handful of startups in Korea have since been listed on the NYSE or NASDAQ. On the other, Sendbird, Noom and Moloco were listed as CB Insights Unicorns, showing that South Korea is not friendly to startup growth.
In 2022, the Tera-Luna crash occurred. The cryptocurrency Tera was once a top 10 market capitalization and its creator, Kwon Do, was briefly hailed as a proud young Korean entrepreneur, but he was arrested in Serbia after traveling the world in secret.
So much has happened in the past 20 years, and Korea IT Times has been quietly recording its history, sometimes joyous, sometimes despairing, and sharing it with its readers. In the meantime, the whole country was suffered from COVID-19. But steadily, Korea has grown from the poorest to the most advanced country. This transformation is a testament to the dedication and hard work of the Korean, and Korea IT Times has played a pivotal role in keeping the public informed and engaged.
I would like to extend my congratulations to Korea IT Times on the occasion of its 20th anniversary. Despite the numerous challenges it has faced over the years, the organization has demonstrated resilience and commitment to growth. I wish it continued development in the future.
About the Author
Dr. Hyoung Joong Kim is a distinguished scholar in the field of blockchain and cryptocurrency studies. He holds the position of Chair Professor at Hoseo University. He obtained his Bachelor's degree from the Department of Electrical Engineering at Seoul National University, subsequently earning his Master's and Ph.D. in Control and Instrumentation Engineering at the same institution. Subsequently, he assumed the role of professor at Korea University’s Graduate School of Information Security in 2006, following his tenure at Kangwon National University. He retired from Korea University in February 2020 and currently serves as the chief editorial writer for Korea IT Times. Since 2015, he has been engaged in research on cryptocurrencies, established the Korea Fintech Society, and is widely recognized as a leading authority in the academic field of blockchain technology, currently serving as its president.
