(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on Feb. 6)

Entrepreneurship

The effect of Apple's iPhone in the global smartphone markets and the upcoming
centennial of one of the most revered Korean businessmen, Lee Byung-chull,
provide an occasion to reflect on what entrepreneurship means to Korea, Inc.

Incidentally, Apple and the Korean business leader's legacy, Samsung, are both
rivals and business partners.
An audacious Steve Jobs recently declared that Apple has overtaken Samsung in
terms of revenue. Though his claim is regarded by industry experts as being
farfetched, there is no denying that the industry is moving in his favor. That is
evidenced by the wild enthusiasm with which consumers have embraced Apple's
innovative mobile handset and its App Store service.
Samsung, the world's second largest handset maker after Nokia, undoubtedly was
taken by surprise by Apple's success in the global smartphone market. After being
hit hard again by Apple's iPad recently, Samsung is already concerned about the
potential impact of the iTV, now reportedly in the pipeline, on its global
business.
The challenge being posed by Apple should remind Samsung of the warning made by
its former chairman, Lee Kun-hee, when he said that one serious mistake in
business strategy may turn Korea's globally influential business group into a
"mom-and-pop store."
The right step Samsung needs to take at the moment is to revive the
entrepreneurship its late founder upheld against all odds when he ventured into
semiconductors in 1983 - at the age of 73. Under his direction, Samsung sank 650
billion won, an amount twice as large as its 1982 total assets, into its first
semiconductor project - the development and production of 64KD and 256KD memory
chips.
Those close to him in and outside Samsung reportedly warned him that what he had
achieved as a businessman might go down the drain because of the project. But he
took the risk and went ahead with his plan, paving the way for Samsung to grow by
leaps and bounds.
Now Samsung is a global corporate giant to be reckoned with. It earns more money
than Japan's top 10 electronics companies put together.
Samsung is the world's largest memory chip maker, with the second largest
trailing far behind. It is also the largest producer of television sets and LCD
panels. Among its clients is Apple, which relies on Samsung chips to produce
iPhones, iPads and other innovative gadgets.
At a time when Samsung is at the risk of lapsing into complacency, however, the
iPhone and the iPad must have given the Korean company a rude reawakening. They
must be keenly aware of Apple's attempt to reshape the global markets for mobile
phones and other handheld devices to its advantage.
What Apple is in pursuit of under the entrepreneurship of Steve Jobs is the kind
of innovation that is little different from combining technologies for "a steam
engine and a horse-driven wagon" to produce a "horseless carriage" in an earlier
age. All the technologies are out there, and what one needs do to produce a new
eye-opening product is the ingenuity of putting together the right technologies,
be they about hardware or software.
As it celebrates the 100th year since the birth of its founder on Feb. 12,
Samsung will have to remind itself of its founder's appetite for taking risks in
starting new businesses. It also needs to encourage creativity and innovation and
make the best use of not just technologies of its own but those that can be
outsourced for the creation of new products.
Similar efforts must be made at the national level as well if Korea, Inc. is to
generate a high rate of growth, create jobs, which are increasingly hard to come
by, and improve the quality of life for its citizens. If necessary, the
government will have to make legal and institutional changes for
entrepreneurship.
(END)

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