SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea has officially legalized the scattering of cremated ashes at sea, known as “Sanbun-jang,” starting this month. The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced Tuesday that the revised Enforcement Decree of the Act on Funeral Services and Burial, which institutionalizes ash scattering, was approved at a Cabinet meeting. Previously, [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea continues to face mounting dining costs for the third consecutive year as high inflation, currency volatility, and rising interest rates drive food prices upward. From popular dining options to workplace cafeterias and convenience store meals, prices have surged, intensifying the so-called ‘lunchflation’ phenomenon. According to data from Statistics [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Lotte World Adventure is set to retire two of its most iconic attractions, the “Bungee Drop” and the “Rotating Swing,” on February 2, 2025, concluding over 20 years of thrilling visitors. The Bungee Drop, introduced in July 2000 with a 3.5 billion won investment, gained widespread popularity for its exhilarating [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — A notable shift in South Korea’s mobile phone market has seen carriers KT and LG Uplus significantly increase subsidies for the iPhone 16 series, influenced by the upcoming release of Samsung’s Galaxy S25 and the abolition of the Mobile Device Distribution Act. Some premium plan subscribers can now obtain even [...]
JEJU, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — The iconic Jeju Fire Festival will return to Saebyeol Oreum from March 14 to 16, 2025, but with a significant change: its signature ceremonial burning of hillside fields will be replaced by a virtual fire display combining media art and live performances, addressing previous environmental concerns. Jeju City announced on [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — The surge in shareholder proposals at South Korean companies over the past five years is showing signs of stabilization in 2025 as corporations adopt proactive measures to address investor demands, according to a recent report. The Ajou Corporate Management Research Institute’s newly released “2025 Annual General Meeting Preview” reveals [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Samsung Electronics is set to launch “Galaxy Easy Trade-in” (unofficial translation), a new buyback program for used smartphones, on its Samsung.com platform starting January 14. According to Samsung, customers looking to sell their used Galaxy smartphones can visit the Galaxy Easy Trade-in page on Samsung.com beginning January 14 to receive [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s three major terrestrial broadcasters—KBS, MBC, and SBS—have filed a lawsuit against tech giant Naver for unauthorized use of their news articles in training its generative artificial intelligence models, HyperCLOVA and HyperCLOVA X. This marks the first legal action by South Korean media outlets against a big tech [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — KB Kookmin Bank’s labor union has filed for dispute mediation with the National Labor Relations Commission, demanding a performance bonus equivalent to 300% of base salary and an additional 10 million won in special incentives. If mediation fails, this could lead to the bank’s first general strike since 2019. [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — In response to the growing trend of direct overseas purchases of cosmetics through international online platforms, South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) announced on Monday, that it will strengthen safety regulations to prevent consumer harm. This initiative will be carried out in collaboration with the Korea [...]