Both terrestrial and satellite-based digital multimedia broadcasting services are finally set to launch commercially over the next few months in South Korea -- "According to research from international intelligence research firm ABI Research, the strife between competing stakeholders will only continue once services launch. More than a year later than expected, Korea's TU Media will launch its satellite-based commercial DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) services in May, while the following month, terrestrial DMB services will also launch, led by the country's major cable news, radio, and television broadcasters. ABI Research does expect the total number of terrestrial DMB subscribers to be significantly higher than satellite DMB subscribers, as terrestrial-based services will be free and feature better programming. However, it will be challenging for terrestrial DMB broadcasters to come up with successful revenue models, so they have been petitioning the government to be allowed to charge subscription fees."
The global smartphone market closed 2025 with a story less about recovery and more about transformation. Premium product, ecosystem lock-in, and manufacturing scale are now the forces shaping competition. For business and technology leaders, the latest IDC market study data confirms that smartphones remain a critical indicator of consumer demand, supply chain health, and AI commercialization at the edge. Smartphone Market Development Global smartphone shipments grew 2.3 percent year-over-year in Q4 2025, reaching 336.3 million units and bringing full-year volumes to 1.26 billion units — a modest 1.9 percent annual increase, according to IDC. This smartphone growth emerged despite a memory shortage crisis, tariff volatility, supply chain disruption, and macroeconomic headwinds. What stabilized demand? Two factors: sustained growth in premium devices and strong foldable momentum, combined with accelerated purchases as consumers bought ahead of anticipated price increases. Buyers weren...