SK Telecom and Naver are seeking to consolidate the operations of their respective smartphone app markets as part of an effort to fight against Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
SK Telecom officials said on December 30, “We are in talks with Naver about possible integration of our T-Store business, which will be spun off from SK Planet, with Naver App Store.”
T-Store and Naver App Store are app markets each run by SK Planet and Naver. A Naver official said, “It is true that our discussion with SK Planet has progressed to a substantial extent. We are seeking to unite forces to strengthen the competitiveness of the local app market.”
Some industry watchers believe that SK Telecom’s latest decision to spin off the T-Store business from its 100-percent owned subsidiary SK Planet is a measure to promote the consolidation of T-Store operation with Naver App Store.
According to the Korea Mobile Internet Business Association, Korea’s app market sales totaled 4.50 trillion won last year, of which Play Store and App Store accounted for 2.33 trillion won and 1.40 trillion won, respectively, with their combined share estimated at more than 80 percent.
