30th August ,2004

ASIA : Samsung Electronics opened the Samsung 4G Forum 2004 at the Shilla Hotel on Korea's Jeju Island on August 23. This two-day conference serves as a venue for discussion of 4th -generation mobile communications standards and is being attended by over 120 key mobile communications representatives from 18 countries.

At the first Samsung 4G Forum, held last year, the overall theme was “global strategies for 4G communications,” and discussions centered on the developmental direction of 4G mobile communications technologies such as air interfaces. The theme for this year's event is “migration paths towards 4G networks,” and the participants will seek more in-depth and application-centric approaches.

More than 40 of the most influential people at six standards bodies and 24 universities are attending the Samsung 4G Forum 2004. In addition, the representation by service providers is much higher this year than last year, enabling substantive information exchanges on the technology and form of next-generation mobile communications that service providers will require.

Samsung Electronics President Kitae Lee says, “We are heavily involved in the research of WiBro hardware and handsets as well as various technologies for 4G mobile communications. It is the time to establish the vision for 4G technologies and services, and we must implement that vision through standardization.” He adds, “I expect this Samsung 4G Forum will be an opportunity to widely share diverse and creative ideas on 4 th -generation mobile communications.”

The 4G mobile communications format is expected to become commercially available around 2010. In preparation, Samsung holds more than 220 patents related to 4G mobile communications. It also has 15 of its people on executive committees at seven different organizations related to 3 rd- and 4 th- generation mobile communications, including 3GPP and WWRF.

About Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2003 parent company sales of US$36.4 billion and net income of US$5.0 billion. Employing approximately 88,000 people in 89 offices in 46 countries, the company consists of six main business units: Corporate Technology Operations, Digital Appliance Business, Digital Media Business, LCD Business, Semiconductor Business and Telecommunication Network Business. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is the world's largest producer of color monitors, color TVs, memory chips, TFT-LCDs and VCRs.