South Korea Approves Apple iPhone for Sale

South Korea's government Wednesday decided to allow the sale of the Apple iPhone, according to the WSJ.

Regulatory barriers have in the past prevented Apple and Research In Motion from reaching South Korean consumers. While this protected and bolstered local companies such as Samsung and LG, it has put its population behind in terms of smart phone technology and software.

"It basically opens a new world," said Lee Chan-jin, a pioneer of South Korea's software industry and chief executive officer of DreamWiz Inc., a mobile software developer and Web portal. "Korea's cellphone software industry was sick, but I expect it to be reinvigorated with iPhone."


"This is a big strike for the government in saying that this is an open market," said Chung Yun-ho, managing partner of Veyond Partners, a telecom consulting firm in Seoul. "Many people regard Korea as an advanced telecom market but they are acknowledging that we are lagging behind in smartphones. They wanted to pressure the telecom companies to embrace new things."

No word on how Apple will distribute the iPhone; however, the company has been in talks with KT Corp., the second-largest provider after SK Telecom Co.

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