App Store
Scope
Date
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E-commerce
Amazon teams up with SK’s 11Street to offer Global Store for Koreans
SK Telecom Co.’s e-commerce platform 11Street Co. has teamed up with Amazon, the world’s largest online shopping mall, to offer the US c...
Aug 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean games
Netmarble’s new Marvel game tops App Store downloads in 117 countries
South Korean game developer Netmarble Corp.’s Marvel Future Revolution, a new Marvel IP-based open-world action RPG, has topped the list of Ap...
Aug 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Retail
Japan’s Aeon plans to sell off struggling Ministop Korea
South Korea’s fifth-largest convenience store chain Ministop Korea Co. is up for sale by its owner, the Aeon Group of Japan. Ministop Korea is...
Aug 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Earnings
‘Revenge shopping’ lifts Korean retail giants’ Q2 earnings
Major department stores in South Korea such as Shinsegae Department Store and Hyundai Department Store Co. have seen their earnings improve signific...
Aug 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Retail
Shinsegae to invest about $900 mn in department stores
South Korea's retail giant Shinsegae Group will invest 1 trillion won ($866 million) in local department stores this year to reinforce the busines...
Aug 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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AI startup Return Zero transforms phone calls into texts
South Korea-based startup Return Zero is enhancing the quality of life for people through its voice recognition app, Vito, which provides phone call...
Aug 10, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech, Media & Telecom
Google’s in-app billing system ignites power play among Korean regulators
South Korea’s attempt to prohibit global app store operators from forcing certain in-app payment schemes has hit a bumpy road due to power pla...
Aug 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Fashion app Queenit raises $9 mn from VC firms
Queenit, a South Korea-based fashion mobile platform targeting women in their 40s and 50s, has raised 10 billion won ($9 million) from venture capit...
Jul 29, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech, Media & Telecom
S.Korea closer to banning Google's in-app billing system
South Korea is a step closer to stopping app store operators like Google Inc. and Apple Inc. from requiring all digital content purchases from apps ...
Jul 21, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture capital
Indonesia's HappyFresh draws half of new funding from Korea
Indonesia's online grocery platform HappyFresh will receive another $33 million from South Korean investors, including the Asian startup fund of Nav...
Jul 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Online players head S.Korea's biggest month for IPOs
South Korea's initial public offering market in July is expected to see its largest-ever amount of share issues for a single month, worth over 8 tri...
Jul 01, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Atlas Labs makes it easy to transcribe phone calls via AI technology
South Korean startup Atlas Labs is making it easier for people to keep track of their phone conversations via Switch, an app that uses artificial in...
Jun 30, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean games
Why Google is getting heat from game companies on recent commission cuts
Global IT giant Google is facing strong backlash from South Korean game companies angry with having to pay a 30% commission on in-app purchases whil...
Jun 29, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Food & Beverage
Malaysia becomes preferred destination for Korea’s convenience chains
South Korea’s major convenience store chains are rushing to enter the Malaysian market. E-Mart 24, the convenience chain operated by Shinsegae...
Jun 24, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Fintech
Toss en route to being Korea’s first fintech decacorn; valuation tops $7 bn
South Korea-based mobile financial platform Toss is en route to becoming the country's first fintech decacorn, or a company valued at over $10 billi...
Jun 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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The Deep Dive
Behind Korea’s bizarre 'open run' race for Chanel bags
In South Korea today, running has become an increasing part of everyday life, particularly at a place where you would least expect to see a large gr...
Jun 08, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Naver to challenge Amazon with launch of Smart Store platform in Spain
South Korea’s top online portal operator Naver Corp. is taking its online shopping platform Smart Store to Spain to support small merchants in...
Jun 06, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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The Deep Dive
Misandry controversy rattles Korean retailers; CEO of No.1 fashion app steps down
Gender-discrimination controversies are rattling South Korean retailers, with two companies recently accused of misandry in publicity campaigns. In...
Jun 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Shopping app Ably raises another $55 mn
South Korea-based Ably Co., operator of the fashion app Ably, announced on Jun. 2 that it has raised 62 billion won ($55.7 million) in a Series B ex...
Jun 02, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Artificial intelligence
Samsung, Bayer join $90 mn investment in AI healthcare app Ada Health
Samsung Electronics Co. and Germany’s pharmaceutical giant Bayer AG have made a joint investment in the Berlin-based artificial intelligence (...
May 28, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pre-IPOs
Masayoshi Son-led SoftBank to invest $2 bn in Yanolja
Vision Fund, led by billionaire SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son, has decided to invest around $2 billion in South Korea's largest travel platform Yan...
May 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pre-IPOs
Travel app Yanolja seeks $900 mn from SoftBank pre-IPO
South Korea’s largest travel platform Yanolja is in negotiations with SoftBank Vision Fund for an investment up to 1 trillion won ($900 millio...
May 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Fashion platform Ably looks to raise over $20 mn
South Korea-based Ably Corporation, the operator of fashion platform Ably, is seeking to raise around 40 billion won ($35.3 million), attracting a p...
May 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech, Media & Telecom
Chat fiction app operator eyes global expansion, webtoon market
As smartphones have become essential to everyday life, chat fiction -- storytelling in the form of fictional text messaging -- has become popular am...
May 18, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
SoftBank Ventures invests in fashion app targeting middle-aged women
South Korea-based Queenit, a fashion mobile platform targeting middle-aged women, has secured around 5.5 billion won ($5 million) from a pool of hig...
May 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Delivery app Yogiyo bidders narrowed to Shinsegae, PEFs
Germany's Delivery Hero SE has narrowed down the list of bidders for South Korea’s second-largest food delivery platform Yogiyo to Shinsegae I...
May 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Heated shopping platform M&As shake up fashion industry
South Korea's fashion industry is all shook up following the No. 1 online fashion platform Musinsa's decision to acquire 29CM, the country’s s...
May 10, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Delivery app Yogiyo draws bids from retailers, PEFs
South Korea’s second-largest food delivery app Yogiyo has drawn about 10 preliminary bidders, including retailer Shinsegae and private equity ...
May 05, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Live commerce app Grip aims to take over the world via shopping
There's an app where users can shop as if they're video chatting with their friends. How does this work? A seller will introduce products via livest...
Apr 14, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Kakao to buy fashion app, pushing aside eBay Korea
Kakao Corp., South Korea's top mobile messaging app operator, is set to acquire a majority stake in Zigzag, a domestic online fashion platform targe...
Apr 08, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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