JYP to seek new boy band through global TV audition show

SEOUL -- South Korea's entertainment powerhouse JYP Entertainment has worked with Sony Music, a global music label based in Tokyo, to form a new global boy band. More than 10,000 applicants auditioned for the audition show titled "Nizi Project Season 2" from 11 cities including New York, Los Angeles, and Nagoya. The process of training and screening would be broadcast on Nippon TV, a Japanese TV channel, and streaming platforms. Through the first season of Nizi Project, t

July 7, 2023

Deceased fighter pilot reunites with sorrow-stricken mother in virtual world

SEOUL -- A South Korean documentary that portrayed the tearful reunion of a sorrow-stricken mother and her son, who died of an unexpected accident during air force training at the age of 27, in the virtual space, has pulled at many viewers' heartstrings. The son named Park In-cheol served as an air force officer and passed away in July 2007 about 50 days after becoming a combat pilot. "Mom, this is In-cheol. I missed you, mom," the virtual human created using

July 6, 2023

Hyundai Glovis partners with ocean plastic disposal company to remove global marine wastes

SEOUL -- Hyundai Glovis, the logistics wing of Hyundai auto group, partnered with The Ocean Cleanup, a Netherlands-based non-profit environmental engineering organization, to launch a project designed to collect marine waste-related data and collect waste plastics. According to the United Nations, about 460 million tons of plastic products are produced annually and only about 10 percent is recycled. Many uncollected plastics end up in rivers and oceans where they threaten the lives of

July 6, 2023

Hanwha Ocean considers establishing factory capable of simultaneously building two naval ships

SEOUL -- Hanwha Ocean, a major shipbuilder in South Korea, is thinking over a large-scale investment to establish an indoor manufacturing plant that can build two naval vessels at the same time. Without being affected by hard weather conditions such as hurricanes or heavy rain, the facility can help the company complete the manufacturing process and deliver products within the scheduled delivery date. The shipbuilder aims to use the new facility to build the fifth and sixth FFX Batch,

July 6, 2023

​Arms procurement agency to adopt anti-drone system for key government facilities

SEOUL -- In a bid to set up a comprehensive anti-drone system that could prevent North Korean unmanned aerial vehicles from spying on key government facilities, South Korea's arms procurement agency will kick-start a 48.5 billion won ($37.2 million) project. Anti-drone systems are mostly used to detect drones and neutralize them before aerial vehicles reach the country's key facilities. According to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), five North Korean drones flew in

July 6, 2023

S. Korea to restrict foreign workers' rights to change workplaces

SEOUL -- Starting on July 9, foreign labor workers in South Korea with the non-professional employment visa "E9" will only be allowed to change their workplaces within the same regional area where their previous workplace was located, except for very few special cases. The country aims to help South Korean employers in rural areas struggling with labor shortages due to the frequent turnover of migrant workers. E9 visa is mainly provided for those in the manufacturing sector.

July 6, 2023

LG Energy Solution and Stellantis to resume construction of EV battery factory in Canada after subsidies deal

SEOUL -- A joint venture between South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution and American carmaker Stellantis will resume the construction of a five-billion Canadian-dollar electric vehicle battery plant in Ontario, Canada after the companies reached a financial deal with the governments of Canada and Ontario. LG Energy Solution (LGES) and Stellantis announced their joint Ontario battery plant investment in March 2022 but things changed when the United States passed the Inflation Red

July 6, 2023

JM. Wave wins state approval to convert internal combustion engine trucks into electric vehicles

SEOUL -- JM. Wave, a South Korean carmaker specializing in electric vehicle conversion, won government approval to convert internal combustion engine trucks into electric models. The company will dismantle various old and damaged trucks weighing about one ton (1,000 kilograms) to recreate them into electric trucks. It has been difficult for the South Korean car manufacturer to carry out electric vehicle (EV) conversion businesses due to government restrictions. Through a regulatory san

July 5, 2023

​S. Korean action-comedy film 'The Roundup: No Way Out' attracts fans to watch prequels via IPTV services

SEOUL -- Amid hype caused by South Korean action-comedy film "The Roundup: No Way Out," directed by Lee Sang-yong, fans of the film series are attracted to watch the original film and sequel via internet protocol television services. The film series starring Ma Dong-seok, an action star known by the English name of Don Lee, captivated action film fans in 2017 with the original film "The Outlaws," depicting a team of detectives investigating organized crime cas

July 5, 2023

SK bioscience to transfer influenza vaccine production technology to Thailand's state-run drugmaker

SEOUL -- SK bioscience, the developer of South Korea's first homemade COVID-19 vaccine, will transfer production technology for cell-based influenza vaccine to a state-run pharmaceutical firm in Thailand. After completing the transfer process, the Thai company aims to utilize SK biosciences technology called "SKYCellflu" for a national immunization project. Cell-based flu vaccines, created using mammalian cells such as kidney cells from monkeys and dogs, are considered to

July 5, 2023