About SK Telecom

SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (SK Telecom) provides wireless telecommunications services. The company engages in the commercial development and implementation of state-of-the-art wireless and fixed-line technologies and services, as well as other new services and products utilizing its artificial intelligence (AI) and digital infrastructure capabilities and its telecommunications platforms, including a broad range of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, platform services, cloud services, smart factory solutions, subscription services, advertising and curated shopping services, and metaverse platform-based services. Business Strategy The key elements of the company's strategy are to maintain its leadership in the wireless services business by offering innovative fifth generation (5G) services and customer-oriented products and services; develop its next-generation growth businesses through hyper-collaboration; develop its technological capabilities and new products and services to support its 5G network; and pursue sustainable management to seek mutual growth with the broader society. Segments The company operates through three segments: Cellular Services, Fixed-Line Telecommunication Service, and Other Businesses. Cellular Services segment Cellular services, which include wireless voice and data transmission services, sales of wireless devices, IoT solutions, platform services, cloud services, smart factory solutions, subscription services, advertising and curated shopping services, and metaverse platform-based services. The company offers wireless voice and data transmission services, sell wireless devices and provide IoT solutions and innovative platform services through its cellular services segment. The company's wireless voice and data transmission services are offered through its backbone networks that collectively can be accessed by approximately 99.0% of the Korean population. The company launched its wireless services using its 5G network in April 2019, and it is continually expanding its 5G network coverage and enhancing service quality. Wireless Services The company offers wireless voice transmission and data transmission services to its subscribers through its backbone networks. The company's wireless telecommunications services are available to its subscribers receiving service under the SK Telecom brand. In addition, customers can obtain wireless telecommunications services that operate on the company's network from mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that lease its wireless networks. The company derives revenues from its wireless telecommunications service principally through monthly plan-based fees. The company provides a voice-over-LTE service, known as its 'HD Voice' service, to all of its long-term evolution (LTE) and 5G subscribers featuring high-quality voice transmission, fast call connection, voice-to-video call switching and digital content sharing during calls. The company also offers its subscribers a wide range of wireless data transmissions services. The company's messaging service allows its subscribers to send and receive text, graphic, audio and video messages. In addition, the company's subscribers can access a wide variety of digital content and services through mobile applications providing music, video, gaming, news, commerce, metaverse community and financial services, as well as solutions that enable subscribers to access the Internet and e-mail. The company intends to continue to build its wireless data services as a platform for growth, extending its portfolio of wireless data services and developing new content for its subscribers. Through service agreements with various foreign wireless telecommunications service providers, the company offers cellular global roaming services, branded as its 'T-Roaming' service. Global roaming services allow subscribers traveling abroad to make and receive calls using their regular mobile phone numbers. In addition, the company provides global roaming service to foreigners traveling to Korea. In such cases, the company generally receives a fee from the traveler's local wireless telecommunications service provider. Through its subsidiary SK Telink Co., Ltd. (SK Telink), the company also operates its MVNO business under the brand 'SK 7Mobile', which offers excellent quality at reasonable rates utilizing SK Telecom's wireless networks. SK Telink is focused on developing low-cost distribution channels and targeting niche customer segments that have a lower average revenue per user than that of SK Telecom's subscriber base. Wireless Device Sales The company offers several categories of wireless devices, including smartphones and basic phones, tablets and other Internet access devices and wearable devices that are sold through an extensive distribution network, which consists of authorized exclusive dealers and independent retailers, as well as branch offices and stores directly operated by the company through its wholly-owned subsidiary, PS&Marketing Corporation (PS&Marketing). The company purchases a substantial majority of its wireless devices from Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd (Samsung Electronics) and Apple. Smartphones and Basic Phones: The company offers smartphones that are enabled to utilize its digital wireless networks and run on various operating systems, such as Apple iOS and Google Android. The company also offers basic phones that have the ability to access wireless Internet services. Tablets and Wearable Devices: The company offers tablets and wearable devices, primarily comprising smart watches, which can access the Internet via its digital wireless networks and a Wi-Fi connection. IoT Solutions Through its IoT solutions business, the company provides network access and enhanced services to support telemetry-type applications, which are characterized by massive machine-type communication (mMTC) wireless connections, to business customers. In order to promote the growth of its IoT solutions business, the company deployed networks nationwide that are designed to support IoT devices, namely its high-speed LTE-M network in March 2016 and its Low-Power Wide-Area network based on LoRa technology (the company's 'LoRa network') in July 2016. In April 2018, the company increased the battery efficiency of its IoT devices by launching its LTE Cat.M1 technology, and the company has further enhanced its competitiveness in this business with its newly deployed 5G network. The company provides network access and customized IoT solutions to its business customers. The company's IoT services support devices that are used in a variety of market segments, including retail, utilities, security, automotive, agriculture and data analytics. For example, the company's Cloud Energy Management Solution (Cloud EMS) business provides a one-stop cloud computing-based energy management platform that collects and analyzes energy usage data from business customers and offers solutions to optimize and reduce their energy consumption. As of December 31, 2022, Cloud EMS had more than 200 customers, mostly from energy-intensive industries, such as the petrochemical industry, as well as the luxury retail industry. Platform Services Through its platform services business, the company seeks to provide innovative AI products and services that meet its customers' evolving needs in an increasingly connected world. In September 2016, the company launched NUGU, the first intelligent AI service launched in Korea with Korean language capabilities based on advanced voice recognition technologies. Through cloud-based deep-learning technology, NUGU is designed to evolve on its own as it collects more data about its users over time. The company offers a variety of smart devices based on NUGU and have also integrated NUGU into its B tv. In addition, the company integrated NUGU into its 'T phone' service, which offers its customers a number of convenient call functions, such as a spam-call blocking function and a search function that informs customers of the phone numbers of shops, hospitals and other facilities closest to the customer's current location. The company continues to explore ways in which it can leverage its NUGU technology to launch new, and enhance its existing, products and services. In May 2022, the company launched a beta-test version of A., the world's first large language model-based AI agent solution in Korean. A. offers the ability to verbally communicate with the user and handle a variety of tasks on the user's smartphone, including recommending and playing personalized music, video, game and television contents. The company plans to continually strengthen the level of personalization offered, and expand the portfolio of services handled, by A., including through collaboration with third parties in areas, such as language models. The company has applied long-term memory technology and multi-modal function to A. and expect to fully launch the application during 2023, with the ultimate goal of A. becoming an essential part of its customers' daily routine. Other New Businesses In recent periods, the company has launched a variety of new businesses leveraging its capabilities in telecommunications technology and information and communication technologies (ICT), and the company is continuing to invest in these and other emerging new business areas, including the following: Cloud Services: The company provides comprehensively managed cloud services in Korea, which entail ongoing and regular support and active administration services ranging from those relating to network, application, infrastructure and security, leveraging its advanced 5G MEC technology and platform. Customers that subscribe to the company's cloud services primarily include businesses that require secure and ultra-low latency communications, focusing on the game, media, logistics, healthcare, finance and manufacturing industries. The company completed the construction of mobile edge computing (MEC) infrastructure at four strategic locations during 2020 and it launched its first MEC-based cloud service, 5GX Edge Cloud, in collaboration with Amazon Web Services in December 2020. In March 2022, in collaboration with Dell Technologies Inc. (Dell), the company launched a MEC platform that combines its 5G MEC solution and Dell's servers and began offering cloud services to global telecommunications companies. The company has also entered into strategic partnerships with a number of other leading cloud service providers to pursue further collaboration in the 5GX Edge Cloud business. Smart Factory Solutions: The company provides tailored smart factory solutions that leverage its 5G and other wireless technology infrastructure, as well as its capabilities in artificial intelligence of things (AIoT) technology and big data analysis to cater primarily to businesses in high-tech industries. The company's smart factory solutions, which are typically provided on a subscription basis, cater to the various needs of its customers, including those related to manufacturing process, quality control, equipment management, industrial safety and logistics. Subscription Service: In August 2021, the company launched a subscription-based membership service under its 'T Universe' brand name. T Universe offers several types of subscription packages, and a subscriber can choose from a variety of available benefits, including free shipping and discount coupons on merchandise purchases made on the Amazon Global Store (which operates on Eleven Street's 11st e-commerce platform), access to a cloud storage service, and discounts and/or coupons from various participating food and beverage store chains and delivery service providers, online video streaming and music services. Customers can also choose to subscribe to specific products or services. In order to continue expanding its T Universe membership base, the company plans to pursue additional business partnerships with popular consumer brands and service providers to increase the number and appeal of the businesses that participate in the T Universe subscription program. It also plans to continue to invest in improving its customers' user experience and strengthen the use of AI and digital technologies in its marketing efforts to promote to grow and evolve T Universe into an 'AI-based subscription commerce platform'. Metaverse: In July 2021, the company launched a metaverse community platform called 'Ifland'. Ifland, which is available as a mobile application on the Google Android and the Apple iOS operating systems, allows users to create personal avatars and communicate with other users by joining one or more of Ifland's thousands of active virtual communities. Users can also create their own communities. In addition, businesses and public institutions have been actively promoting their services, products and events on the Ifland platform. The company's Ifland mobile application has been able to quickly increase its user base, and during the fourth quarter of 2022, it launched Ifland in 49 other countries. The company plans to further enhance its customers' user experience by increasing the media and game contents available on the platform through collaboration with third-party content creators and strategic partners. The company has begun supporting economic transactions on the Ifland platform by introducing virtual points that may be monetized into cash, and it plans to further enhance the level of economic activities on the platform through the introduction of in-app purchases and the use of non-fungible token technologies. Advertising and Curated Shopping Services: The company offers advertising services to businesses by leveraging its wireless telecommunications services platform. The company's advertising services primarily consist of display advertising on its proprietary mobile applications for smartphones, including 'T Phone' (which manages its wireless customers' voice calls) and 'T Membership' (which manages its customer loyalty program under the same name). In addition, the company offers a text message-based curated shopping service under its 'T Deal' brand. The company's customers who have consented to the T Deal service receive a daily text message on their smartphones with a link to a broad range of merchandise with significant discounts that are specially curated to maximize customer interest by utilizing AI technology and big data. Rate Plans The company offers its wireless telecommunications services on both a postpaid and prepaid basis. Substantially all of the company's subscribers received its wireless telecommunications services on a postpaid basis as of December 31, 2022. Postpaid accounts primarily represent retail subscribers under contract with SK Telecom pursuant to which a subscriber is billed in advance a monthly fixed service fee in return for a monthly network service allowance and usage for outgoing voice calls and wireless data services beyond the allowance is billed in arrears, where payment of the total amount of the bill is due at the end of the month. The standard contract period for the company's rate plans is 24 months, although its subscribers have the option to enter into shorter term contracts or no fixed-term contract at all. The company provides various subsidies and discounts, including handset subsidies, depending on the length of the contract and the subscriber's chosen rate plan. The company's prepaid service enables individuals to obtain wireless telecommunications services without a fixed-term contract by paying for all services in advance according to expected usage. The company does not charge its customers for incoming calls, although it does receive interconnection charges from KT and other companies for calls from the fixed-line network terminating on its networks and interconnection revenues from other wireless network operators. Basic Rate Plan: The company offers various postpaid account plans for smartphones and basic phones that are designed to meet a wide range of subscriber needs and interests. The company's 5G services are primarily provided through the '5GX' plans, which offer unlimited domestic voice minutes and text messaging and unlimited data transmission allowance per month. The company also offers '5G Basic' and '5G Slim' plans. The company's representative smartphone rate plans for its LTE services are the 'T' plans, which feature unlimited domestic voice minutes and text messaging and a fixed or unlimited data transmission allowance per month. The company also offers 'Direct' plans that are exclusively available through its online distribution channel. The company's 'Voice Free' plans are available for its basic phones and feature a fixed allowance of voice minutes and 50 text messages per month. The company also offers a standard rate plan, through which the subscriber is charged per usage amount, other than on text message usage up to 50 messages per month. In addition, the company provides a variety of differentiated rate plans for its customer segments, such as its '0' plans for smartphone users who are 24 years old or younger tailored for younger demographics, its '0 Teen' plans for teenagers who are 18 years old or younger, its 'ZEM' plans for children who are 12 years old or younger, its 'T Senior' LTE and 5G plans for users who are 65 years or older, its '5G Happiness (Haengbok-nuri)' plans for customers with visual impairment or hearing loss and its '0 Hero' LTE plans for users who are performing mandatory military service. With respect to the tablet and smart watches it offers, the company provides a monthly 5G data transmission allowance of 4GB (gigabytes) (with reduced speeds after 4GB of usage) in the case of tablets and a fixed monthly data transmission allowance of 250MB and 50 minutes of voice calling for smart watches. The company also offers bundled rate discount plans combining multiple wireless devices, as well as those combining its wireless services with its fixed-line communications services and/or SK shieldus' physical security services. In addition, the company offers bundled rate plans that provide discounts for family members or co-inhabitants of the same household. Data Add-on Rate Plans: The company offers a variety of optional 'add-on' rate plans that are designed to meet a wide range of subscriber needs with respect to increased data usage that followed the widespread use of smartphones and faster transmission speeds. For example, the company offers specialized add-on data plans, such as its 'Commuter Free' plan, which offers unlimited wireless data usage during rush hour. For certain rate plan subscribers, the company also offers unlimited access to the wavve video streaming service through its 'wavve and Data Plus' plan at no additional cost, at a discounted rate, or at the standard rate, depending on the subscribers' basic rate plan. 'Safe Option Premium' offers an additional daily data transmission allowance of 50MB to subscribers who have used the maximum data transmission on their existing plan without incurring additional data transmission fees. The company also offers 'T Data Coupons', through which subscribers can purchase a fixed amount of data for a fixed price and can also be sent as 'gifts' to family and friends that need additional data allowance. In addition, the company expects to introduce optional add-on data purchase plans for its 5G Basic plans beginning in May 2023. Roaming Plans: 'Baro Roaming Plan' is the company's representative international roaming plan for longer term travelers and provides fixed data transmission allowances of 3GB, 4GB or 7GB that can be used over a specified number of days between seven to 30 days in 187 countries. Subscribers between the age of 18 and 29 receive an additional data allowance of 1GB. In addition, the company offers monthly benefits to subscribers of the Baro Roaming Plan, including discount coupons for overseas travel insurance. The company's 'OnePass 300' and 'OnePass 500' plans, which are more suitable for short-term travellers, provide data roaming of 300MB and 500MB, and are available in 188 countries. The company also offers 'OnePass Data VIP' plan, which provides unlimited data roaming in 136 countries. All of the company's roaming plans include free high-quality data voice calls and text messages to Korea through its T Phone application. The company also provides to all of its roaming service subscribers an automatic roaming service called 'Safe Automatic T Roaming', which provides 30 minutes of voice calls per day (including three minutes of free voice calls) without having to separately purchase a roaming plan. Digital Wireless Network The company offers wireless voice and data transmission services throughout Korea using digital wireless networks, primarily consisting of its 5G network, LTE network, WCDMA network, Wi-Fi network and LoRa network. The company continually upgrades and increases the capacity of its wireless networks to keep pace with advancements in technology, the growth of its subscriber base and the increased usage of voice and wireless data services by its subscribers. 5G Network: 5G is the state-of-the-art wireless network that enables data to be transmitted at speeds faster than the company's LTE network with lower latency. The company began the operation of its 5G network in December 2018 on a limited basis for business customers, beginning with a few major commercial districts in Seoul and other metropolitan areas. In April 2019, the company launched wireless service plans using the 5G network following the commencement of sales of the first 5G-compatible smartphones, and it is in the process of further expanding its 5G network coverage. The company's 5G network coverage includes all of the major metropolitan and other urban areas, as well as subway lines, in Korea, and the company expects to be able to provide full nationwide coverage within the next several years. The company's 5G services provided a maximum data transmission speed of 2.75 Gbps, and its 5G penetration, which represents the number of its 5G subscribers as a percentage of its total number of subscribers, in each case, including MVNO subscribers leasing its networks, was 41.0% as of December 31, 2022. The company has also deployed its 5G network for mMTC connections relating to its IoT solutions. The company's 5G technology and network infrastructure enable it to provide the fastest 5G data transmission network nationwide. In December 2022, the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) announced that its 5G network provided the fastest upload and download speeds among the three mobile network operators, KT, LG U+ and the company. The nationwide average download speed of its 5G network was 1,002 Mbps (one million bits per second) compared to 921 Mbps for KT's 5G network and 765 Mbps for LG U+'s 5G network. LTE Network: LTE technology has become widely accepted globally as the standard fourth generation technology and enables data to be transmitted at speeds faster than the company's WCDMA network. The company has developed and launched various upgraded LTE networks and related services providing faster network speeds, enhanced connectivity and broader coverage areas. The company expects that wireless services based on LTE technology will continue to be used by a significant portion of its users in the near future, as it and its competitors further expand 5G networks and services and wireless service users continue to migrate to the 5G network over time, and plans to continue to deploy improved LTE technology to increase the maximum data transmission speed of its services. The company's advanced LTE technology and dense network infrastructure enable it to provide the fastest LTE data transmission network nationwide. In December 2022, the MSIT announced that the company's LTE network provided the fastest upload and download speeds among the three mobile network operators, KT, LG U+ and it. The nationwide average download speed of the company's LTE network was 209.0 Mbps compared to 135.4 Mbps for KT's LTE network and 111.4 Mbps for LG U+'s LTE network. Wi-Fi Network: Wi-Fi technology enables the company's subscribers with Wi-Fi-capable devices, such as smartphones, laptops and tablet computers to access mobile Internet. The company started to build Wi-Fi access points in 2010 and, as of December 31, 2022, the company had more than 100,700 Wi-Fi access points in public areas, such as shopping malls, restaurants, coffee shops, subways and airports where, generally, the demand for high-speed wireless Internet service is high. While each Wi-Fi access point typically has a radius of approximately 20-30 meters, some of the company's Wi-Fi hot zones, which have multiple Wi-Fi access points, including those installed at public transportation facilities and amusement parks, have much wider service areas. LoRa Networks: A Low-Power Wide-Area network based on LoRa technology is a type of telecommunications network designed to support communication among IoT devices. It can transmit data over tens of kilometers while consuming much less power than LTE networks, lowering costs for connectivity, as well as lowering battery power usage. The company completed the nationwide deployment of its LoRa network in July 2016. The company expects that its LoRa network will provide the infrastructure necessary for the growth of not only its own IoT solutions business but also the IoT industry as a whole. Network Infrastructure The principal components of the company's wireless networks are: Base stations (or cell sites), which are physical locations equipped with transmitters, receivers and other equipment that communicate by radio signals with wireless handsets within range of the cell (typically a 3 to 40 kilometer radius); Switching stations, which switch voice and data transmissions to their proper destinations, which may be, for instance, a mobile phone of one of the company's subscribers (for which transmissions would originate and terminate on the company's wireless networks), a mobile phone of a KT or LG U+ subscriber (for which transmissions would be routed to KT's or LG U+'s wireless networks, as applicable), a fixed-line telephone number (for which calls would be routed to the public switched telephone network of a fixed-line network operator), an international number (for which calls would be routed to the network of a long distance service provider) or an Internet site; and Transmission lines, which link base stations to switching stations and switching stations with other switching stations. As of December 31, 2022, the company's 5G, LTE and WCDMA networks had an aggregate of 58,558 base stations. As the company continues to expand its 5G network coverage, the number of its base stations is expected to increase accordingly. The company has purchased substantially all of the equipment for its networks from Samsung Electronics, Ericsson-LG Co., Ltd. (Ericsson-LG) and Nokia Corporation (Nokia). Most of the transmission lines the company uses, including virtually all of the lines linking switching stations, as well as a portion of the lines linking base stations to switching stations, comprise optical fiber lines that it owns and operates directly. However, the company has not undertaken to install optical fiber lines to link every base station and switching station. In places where the company has not installed its own transmission lines, it has leased lines from KT and LG U+. The company intends to increase the efficiency of its network utilization and provide optimal services by internalizing transmission lines. The company uses a wireless network surveillance system. This system oversees the operation of base stations and allows it to monitor its main equipment located throughout the country from one monitoring station. The automatic inspection and testing provided to the base stations lets the system immediately rebalance to the most suitable setting, and the surveillance system provides for automatic dispatch of repair teams and quick recovery in emergency situations. Marketing, Distribution and Customer Service Marketing: The company markets its wireless products and services under the 'T' brand, which signifies the centrality of 'Telecommunications' and 'Technology' to its business and also seeks to emphasize its commitment to providing 'Top' quality, 'Trustworthy' products and services to its customers. The company operates a customer information system designed to provide it with an extensive customer database. The company's customer information system includes a billing system that provides it with comprehensive account information for internal purposes and enables it to efficiently respond to customer requests. The company's customers can also change their rate plans, verify the charges accrued on their accounts, receive their bills online and send text messages to its other subscribers through its website at www.tworld.co.kr and through its 'T world' mobile application. The company strives to improve subscriber retention through its T Membership program, which is a membership service available to its wireless subscribers. The company's T Membership program provides various membership benefits to its members, such as discounts with its membership partners for dining, shopping, entertainment and travel, membership points accumulation, access to its online membership shopping mall and invitations to various promotional events. Distribution: The company uses a combination of an extensive network, including branch offices and stores, directly operated by it through its subsidiary, PS&Marketing, more than 3,000 authorized exclusive dealers and an extensive network of independent retailers in order to increase subscriber growth while reducing subscriber acquisition costs. As part of its initiative to provide a differentiated customer service experience, the company operates T Premium Stores that allow its potential and existing subscribers to receive detailed information on its subscription services. In addition, the company operates an online distribution channel, 'T Direct Shop', through which subscribers can conveniently purchase wireless devices and subscribe to its services online. The company also operates a dedicated online shop on 11st, its former subsidiary Eleven Street's e-commerce marketplace. In light of increasing customer preference for online service, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the level of distribution of the company's wireless devices and its services through online channels has significantly increased in recent years. The company intends to continue to develop its online distribution channel to leverage its offline distribution capabilities to provide convenience and additional value to its subscribers. For example, subscribers purchasing wireless devices through T Direct Shop can opt to pick up their devices at one of its offline stores. Customer Service: The company provides high-quality customer service directly through its two subsidiaries, Service Ace Co., Ltd. and Service Top Co., Ltd., rather than rely on outsourcing. SK O&S Co., Ltd. operates the company's switching stations and related transmission and power facilities and offers quality customer service primarily to its business customers. The company has held the top position with respect to its telecommunications service in Korea's leading three customer satisfaction indices, the National Customer Satisfaction Index, the Korean Customer Satisfaction Index and the Korean Standard-Service Quality Index, for 25 years, 25 years and 23 years, respectively. Fixed-Line Telecommunication Service segment This segment offers fixed-line telephone, broadband Internet and advanced media platform services (including IPTV and cable TV services) and business communications services. The company's fixed-line telecommunications services are provided by its subsidiary, K Broadband Co., Ltd. (SK Broadband). Fixed-line Telephone Services The company's fixed-line telephone services comprise local, domestic long distance, international long distance and voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) services. VoIP is a technology that transmits voice data through an Internet Protocol network. The company's fixed-line telephone services are primarily offered under the 'B phone' brand name. A portion of the company's fixed-line telephone services were previously provided through the VoIP services of its subsidiary SK Telink Co., Ltd. (SK Telink) that targeted corporate customers, which business was acquired by SK Broadband in April 2021. Broadband Internet Access Services The company's broadband Internet access network covered more than 87% of households in Korea as of December 31, 2022. The company offers broadband Internet access products with various throughput speeds, ranging from 'Giga Premium', which is up to 10 times faster than data transmission speeds on networks utilizing FTTH technology and allows for data transmission at a maximum speed of 1 Gbps (one billion bits per second), to 'Giga Premium×10', which provides data transmission speeds of up to 10 Gbps. Advanced Media Platform (including IPTV and Cable TV Services) As part of its initiative to be the leading next-generation platform provider, the company provides an advanced media platform with various media content and service offerings. The company offers IPTV services under the brand name 'B tv' with access to as many as 263 high definition channels depending on the subscription service as of December 31, 2022, as well as pay-per-view and subscription-based video-on-demand services providing a wide range of media content, including recent box office movie releases, popular U.S. and other foreign TV shows and various children's TV programs. The company also offers 'B tv UHD', which is an ultra-high definition IPTV service and has a resolution that is four times as high as the standard high definition broadcasting service in the IPTV industry. The company has unveiled a number of smart set-up boxes that incorporate voice recognition and command capabilities, as well as AI-based services that utilize its proprietary NUGU platform and, in some cases, Google Assistant capabilities. In November 2021, the company launched its 'Apple TV 4K' set top box in collaboration with Apple, which offers a convenient solution for customers to experience its high definition IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) services, as well as other types of Apple iOS-based entertainment services (such as the Apple TV+ video streaming service) while providing seamless integration with other Apple iOS-based hardware. The Apple TV+ video streaming service is also available on other types of the company's latest set top boxes. In January 2022, the company introduced 'Play Z', an innovative home entertainment platform supported by a portable set top box that can be connected to television sets and personal computers. Play Z allows customers to search for and purchase content offerings from a variety of popular online video streaming services, and also offers free advertising-supported television streaming contents and other video-on-demand offerings, as well as other forms of home entertainment, including video games and karaoke. The company also offers cable TV services under the 'B tv Cable' brand with access to as many as 224 channels. The company's new subsidiary, Media S Co., Ltd. (Media S), operates two TV channels, 'Channel S', which primarily broadcasts entertainment contents; and 'Channel S Plus', which specializes in regional contents. Some of the contents broadcasted on these two channels are original contents co-produced by Media S and leading entertainment production companies. The company plans to further invest in developing additional original video contents to increase the attractiveness of the channels operated by Media S Co., Ltd. (Media S). The company also offers advertising services on its advanced media platform, primarily consisting of advertisements on video-on-demand and streaming contents and its TV channels. The company continues to expand the scope of its media services and content offerings to provide its subscribers with a vast library of high-quality content that can be accessed through its wireless networks and its fixed-line network, which will also increase the appeal of its advanced media platform to businesses as an advertising platform. Business Communications Services The company offers other business communications services to its business customers, including corporations and government entities. The company's business communications services include leased line solutions, Internet data center solutions and network solution services. The company's leased line solutions are exclusive lines that allow point-to-point connection for voice and data traffic between two or more geographically separate points. The company holds a license to operate leased line services on a nationwide basis in Korea and also use international transmission lines to provide leased line services to other countries. The company's leased line services enable high volumes of data to be transmitted swiftly and reliably. The company also provides back-up storage for transmitted data. Through its Internet data centers, the company provides its business subscribers with server-based support, including co-location, dedicated server hosting and cloud computing services. The company's network solution service utilizes its network infrastructure and voice platform to provide 24-hour monitoring and control of its customers' networks. Through this service, the company conducts remote monitoring of its customers' data and voice communications infrastructure and network and traffic conditions, and carry out preventive examinations and on-site visits. Rate Plans For its residential customers, the company offers both bundled rate plans for a combination of its fixed-line service offerings, as well as individual rate plans for each separate service offering. Bundled rate plans are offered at a discount compared to subscribing to the same services through individual rate plans. Approximately 85% of subscribers to the company's broadband Internet services subscribe to two or more of its services through its bundled rate plans. Bundled rate plans for a combination of fixed-line telephone, broadband Internet access and IPTV or cable TV services, which are subject to a contract of one to three years. The company also offers bundled rate plans combining its fixed-line communication services with its wireless services and physical security services, respectively, as well as bundled rate plans that provide discounts for family members or co-inhabitants of the same household. The company's '5,000 minute' plan for subscribers to its fixed-line telephone service features 5,000 voice minutes for domestic land-to-land calls for a fixed rate. The company offers individual fixed-rate plans for its broadband Internet access service. The company offers individual fixed-rate plans for its IPTV and cable TV services. In addition, subscribers can purchase individual videos on demand or subscribe to certain paid content on a periodic basis. With respect to its business communications services, the company offers rates that are tailored to the specific needs of its business customers. The company also charges certain installation fees and equipment rental fees, as well as other ancillary fees with respect to certain of its fixed-line telecommunications services. Marketing, Distribution and Customer Service The company focuses on bringing its fixed-line telephone, broadband Internet and advanced media platform services (including IPTV and cable TV services) to residential users, and various business communications services to corporate users. The company markets its fixed-line telecommunications products and services under the 'B' brand. THe company's 'B' brand signifies the centrality of 'Broadband' to its business and also seeks to emphasize its commitment to providing the 'Best' quality products and services to its customers that go 'Beyond' expectations, leading to a 'Bravo' response. The company's 'B' brand also strengthens its shared identity with its wireless service's 'T' brand. The company outsources a significant portion of its retail sales force needs. The company markets its services and provide after-sales service support to customers through its customer centers and an extensive network of authorized exclusive dealers located throughout Korea. In addition, SK Telecom's direct retail stores and authorized dealers for wireless telecommunications services also market its fixed-line telephone, broadband Internet and advanced media platform services (including IPTV and cable TV services), which has contributed to the increase in the number of subscribers to such services. The company has contracts with its customer centers to sell its services exclusively. These centers receive a commission for each service contract and installation contract secured. In addition, the company pays these centers for the maintenance and repair work that they perform for its subscribers. Customer and service centers often enter into sub-contracts with smaller distribution outlets within their area to increase their sales coverage and engage in telemarketing efforts. Authorized dealers are entitled to an initial commission for each new subscriber registered by the dealer. Sales to business subscribers are handled through the company's in-house sales group. The company's sales teams focus on securing contracts with large commercial complexes, allowing it to install its remote terminals at their premises. After installation, sales teams direct their attention to individual business clients within these premises. Sales teams that have secured contracts with business clients remain the primary contacts for all aspects of the client's needs, including further installation and customer and follow-up service. Other Businesses segment Other businesses, which include the company's T-commerce business and certain other miscellaneous businesses. The company strives to continually diversify its products and services and develop new businesses are complementary to its existing products and services, which it includes in its other businesses segment. In 2022, the revenue of the company's other businesses segment, which primarily consisted of its T-commerce and portal service businesses. T-Commerce The company operates a T-commerce network, 'SK stoa', through its consolidated subsidiary SK Stoa, which offers a broad assortment of goods and services through pre-recorded television programming. The goods and services promoted on SK stoa's T-commerce programming can be purchased through telephone orders, SK stoa's mobile application or online open marketplace, or a virtual application appearing on the television screen using the viewer's remote controller. In March 2019, SK Stoa launched 'SK stoa ON', which offers searchable shopping programming that is available to viewers at their convenience by utilizing video-on-demand capabilities, and is continually enhancing the level of personalized product and service recommendations offered by such platform by leveraging its AI technology and wealth of customer data. SK Stoa launched its private fashion brands, 'Hellen Karen' and 'indicode', in September 2019 and February 2021, respectively, and its private health supplement brand, 'Diet & Morosil Easy' in June 2022, and it is planning to further strengthen its portfolio of exclusively distributed high-margin products in fashion, health and beauty. SK stoa also acts as the exclusive T-commerce distributor for certain products and services of SK Group companies, such as food, electronics, home appliances and car rentals. Portal Service The company offers a portal service under its 'Nate' brand name through SK Communications Co., Ltd. Nate can be accessed through its website, www.nate.com, or through its mobile application. Nate offers a wide variety of content and services, including Nate Search, an Internet search engine, Nate News, which provides a library of articles about events, sports, entertainment and culture, and Nate Pann, a user-generated content service, as well as access to free e-mail accounts through Nate Mail. Online Employee Benefits Management and Training Services In February 2022, the company indirectly re-acquired a 100.0% equity interest in SK m&service Co., Ltd. (SK M&Service), which provides online corporate employee benefits management and training services to Korean businesses and public institutions, through its wholly-owned subsidiary PS&Marketing from SK Planet. Interconnection The company's wireless and fixed-line networks interconnect with the public switched telephone networks operated by KT Corporation (KT) and SK Broadband Co., Ltd. (SK Broadband) and, through their networks, with the international gateways of KT and LG Uplus Corp.(LG U+), as well as the networks of the other wireless telecommunications service providers in Korea. These connections enable the company's subscribers to make and receive calls from telephones outside its networks. Under Korean law, certain service providers, including the company, are required to permit other service providers to interconnect to their networks. If a new service provider desires interconnection with the networks of an existing service provider but the parties are unable to reach an agreement within 90 days, the new service provider can appeal to the Korea Communications Commission (KCC). Domestic Calls Wireless-to-Fixed-line: According to its interconnection arrangement with KT, for a call from the company's wireless network to KT's fixed-line network, the company collects the usage rate from its wireless subscriber and in turn pay KT the interconnection charges. Similarly, KT pays interconnection charges to SK Broadband for a call from KT's wireless network to SK Broadband's fixed-line network. The interconnection rate applicable to both KT and SK Broadband. Fixed-line-to-Wireless: The MSIT determines interconnection arrangements for calls from a fixed-line network to a wireless network. For a call initiated by a fixed-line user to one of the company's wireless subscribers, the fixed-line network operator collects its usage fee from the fixed-line user and remits to it an interconnection charge. Interconnection with KT accounts for substantially all of the company's fixed-line-to-wireless interconnection revenue and expenses. Wireless-to-Wireless: Interconnection charges also apply to calls between wireless telephone networks in Korea. Under these arrangements, the operator originating the call pays an interconnection charge to the operator terminating the call. The applicable interconnection rate is the same as the fixed-line-to-wireless interconnection rate. International Calls and International Roaming Arrangements With respect to international calls, if a call is initiated by its wireless subscribers, the company bill the wireless subscriber for the international charges of KT, LG U+ or SK Broadband, and the company receives interconnection charges from such operators. To complement the services the company provides to its subscribers in Korea, it offers international voice and data roaming services. Competition Cellular Services The company faces competition from KT and LG U+, as well as other platform service providers in its other cellular service businesses. For example, the company's Smart Home service competes with KT's Giga IoT Home service and LG U+'s IoT@Home service. Fixed-Line Telecommunications Services The company's fixed-line telephone service competes with KT and LG U+, as well as providers of other VoIP services. The company's IPTV and cable TV services compete with other providers of pay TV services, including KT, LG U+ and cable companies. Furthermore, the company's IPTV and cable TV services are facing an increasing level of competition from global operators of online video streaming platforms, such as YouTube, Netflix, Disney Plus and Apple TV, leading domestic video streaming platforms, such as TVING, Wavve, Coupang Play and Watchaa, and the video services offered by leading domestic online and mobile search and communications platforms, including NAVER and Kakao Corp. (Kakao), as such services continue to become increasingly popular to serve as a substitute to traditional television programming. Other Investments and Relationships The company has investments in several other businesses and companies and has entered into various business arrangements with other companies. The company formed a strategic alliance in October 2019 with Kakao, a Korean Internet company and the operator of Korea's most popular mobile messaging application, to collaborate in the ICT sector. In addition, in July 2022, the company entered into a strategic alliance with Hana Financial Group Inc., a leading financial holding company in Korea with subsidiaries having significant presences in commercial banking, credit card business, securities brokerage and insurance, among others, to seek synergies through convergence between finance and ICT technology. Law and Regulation The company's licenses permit it to provide cellular services, third generation wireless telecommunications services using wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) and wireless broadband Internet access (WiBro) technologies, fourth generation wireless telecommunications services using LTE technology and fifth generation wireless telecommunications services using 5G technology. In addition, the company qualifies as a 'market-dominating business entity' under the Korean Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act (Fair Trade Act). The company is required under the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act to file a report with a designated foreign exchange bank or with the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF), in connection with any issue of foreign currency denominated securities by it in foreign countries. History The company was founded in 1984. The company was incorporated in 1984 under the laws of Korea. It was formerly known as Korea Mobile Telecommunications Co., Ltd. and changed its name to SK Telecom Co., Ltd. in 1997.