SEOUL, South Korea-South Korea’s top mobile carrier SK Telecom will be barred from recruiting subscribers from 21 November until 20 December for subsidizing handset purchases, the Korean government said Friday.
The Korea Communications Commission (KCC), South Korea’s top telecom regulator, imposed temporary business suspension orders on three mobile carriers, including SK Telecom, late last month. The Ministry of Information and Communication finalized the schedules for the business suspension order Friday.
KTF, the second-largest mobile carrier, will be blocked from attracting new subscribers from 21 December to 9 January, and LG Telecom, the smallest carrier, from 10-29 January, government officials said.
The information ministry also said it has decided to slap 1 billion won (US$829,000) in penalties on SK Telecom for having failed to honor its merger conditions with SK Shinsegi Telecom. The ministry gave a green light to the controversial merger that could pose a serious threat to minor players, such as LG Telecom, requiring SK Telecom to comply with 13 preconditions.
During the business suspension period, people cannot sign up for a new mobile-phone service, but existing subscribers will be allowed to change handsets and modify subscription conditions, the ministry said.
The strict ban on handset subsidies formally went into effect in May 2000. Korea is one of few countries where handset subsidies, part of marketing activities by private firms, are formally banned.
