Internet Speed to Get 10 Times Faster by 2012

A government plan will seek to speed up the Internet 10 times by 2012, as well as develop ultra high-definition TV and portable Internet protocol TV.

Ultra high-definition TV offers up to 16 times higher resolution than high-definition TV.

The Korea Communications Commission announced yesterday that it finalized a long-term investment plan at its general meeting Friday. It decided to build an ultra broadband convergence network, one of the world’s highest standards in the information highway.

An investment of 34.1 trillion won (24.7 billion U.S. dollars) will go into the project, including 1.3 trillion won (942 million dollars) in government funds, by 2013.

The network will provide converged Internet services faster and at a higher quality, including real-time broadcasting and a range of interactive services in education, medicine and e-commerce.

An integrated access device will allow a user to run the “multiple play service,” which combines the Internet, telephone and mobile IPTV, on the go.

The government said Internet service providers will provide 1 Gbps Internet services, 10 times faster than existing optical networks.

The commission plans to increase the number of 3G Internet service subscribers to 40 million by 2012 and launch a 10 Mbps wireless Internet service 10 times faster than existing 3G networks by 2013.

Fixed-line and wireless networks will be gradually changed to an Internet protocol-based network. Once the phone networks are changed to an Internet-protocol-based one, all existing phones will be replaced with voice over Internet protocol phones.

In addition two-way communication infrastructure will be built by 2010 for the broadcast industry to allow online shopping while watching terrestrial TV.

Coverage of digital broadcasting will also rise from 87 percent of terrestrial TV to 96 percent by 2012.