- SK Telecom plans to invest in MobiledgeX, an edge computing company founded by Deutsche Telekom AG. Deutsche Telekom plans to invest the same amount to ID Quantique, SK Telecom’s strategic partner in quantum cryptography technology
- The two companies continue their strategic technology and business partnership to strengthen their competitiveness in 5G
Deutsche Telekom and SK Telecom today entered into a cross investment agreement to further strengthen their competitiveness in 5G and deepen their cooperation in the global market. With this agreement, the two market leaders of Korea and Germany continue their strategic partnership announced at Mobile World Congress 2016.
Under the agreement, SK Telecom plans to invest in MobiledgeX, an edge computing company founded by Deutsche Telekom and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, focused on delivering developer-facing edge computing services. Deutsche Telekom plans to invest the same amount to ID Quantique (IDQ), SK Telecom’s strategic partner in quantum cryptography communication technology based in Switzerland.
Going forward, SK Telecom and Deutsche Telekom plan to share their technologies and knowhow. The two companies made their cross-investment decision to gain leadership in the upcoming era of 5G by offering specialized 5G services with ultra-low latency in areas like telemedicine as well as AR and VR, while addressing potential security threats.
“SK Telecom is pleased to enter into a cross-investment agreement with Deutsche Telekom as it will serve as a valuable opportunity for us to further solidify our 5G leadership in the global market and drive new growth,” said Park Jung-ho, President and Chief Executive Officer of SK Telecom.
“We look forward to intensifying our successful cooperation with SK Telecom. The partnership will help both companies to strengthen our global technology leadership and bring 5G and other innovative services to our customers,” stated Timotheus Höttges, CEO of Deutsche Telekom.
Unlike the pre-5G era, which was mainly about communication between people, the 5G era will be marked by communication between people and things, as well as communication between things, which will support intelligent services like connected car, smart factory and wearable devices.
Deutsche Telekom and SK Telecom are reviewing the idea of utilizing mobile edge computing technologies to reduce data transfer time. With mobile edge computing, companies can conduct on-site monitoring of disaster-affected areas and respond faster to traffic accidents.
Moreover, Deutsche Telekom is reviewing the idea of adopting quantum cryptography communication systems. To this end, SK Telecom and Deutsche Telekom are currently in the process of qualifying quantum cryptography technologies on their respective trial networks.
About SK Telecom
Established in 1984, SK Telecom is the largest mobile operator in Korea by both revenue and number of subscribers. As of December 2017, the company holds around 50 percent of the market, with 30.2 million mobile subscribers including 22.87 million LTE subscribers. It has reached KRW 17.520 trillion in revenue in 2017. SK Telecom has led the advancement of mobile technologies ranging from 2G to 4G, and is currently setting important milestones in its journey to 5G. The company is not only leading innovation in the field of mobile network, but also providing IoT, media, home and platform services. SK Telecom is determined to play a significant role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution by achieving innovations and promoting shared growth with other players in the industry.
For more information, please contact sktelecom@bm.com or www.globalskt.com.
About Deutsche Telekom: Companyprofile
