The three major domestic mobile carriers (SKT, KT, and LGU+) smiled for the second consecutive year as their combined operating profit reached 4 trillion won.

According to the 2022 annual revenue announced by the three mobile carriers, the combined operating profit last year was approximately 4.3835 trillion won, marking a record-breaking performance.

A notable feature is that it surpassed the 4 trillion won mark for two consecutive years, following 4.038 trillion won in 2021. This represents an increase of approximately 8.6% compared to 2021, with operating profits of 1.6121 trillion won for SKT, 1.6901 trillion won for KT, and 1.0813 trillion won for LG Uplus.

Looking at the performance by telecommunications carrier, SKT announced on the 8th that it recorded annual revenue of 17.305 trillion won, operating profit of 1.6121 trillion won, and net profit of 947.8 billion won based on consolidated financial statements for 2022. These figures represent a 3.3% increase in revenue, a 16.2% increase in operating profit, and a 60.8% decrease in net profit, respectively.

KT announced on the 9th that it recorded revenue of 25.6 trillion won, up 3.0% from the previous year, operating profit of 1.6901 trillion won, up 1.1%, and net profit of 1.3877 trillion won, down 4.9%. LGU+ recorded sales of 13.906 trillion won, up 0.4% from 2021, and an operating profit of 1.0813 trillion won, up 10.4%.

The three mobile carriers cited this favorable trend as a driving force for growth across all business areas, including media and content, centered on wired and wireless businesses.
Some believe that the increase in the number of subscribers to 5G plans, which are priced higher than existing plans, had a major impact.

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT's December 2022 wireless communication service statistics, the number of customer mobile phone subscribers for the three major mobile carriers decreased by approximately 1 million from 49,221,401 to 48,222,955 last year, while the number of 5G subscribers increased by approximately 33.76% from 20,860,361 to 27,901,884.

Based on the record-breaking performance despite a decline in the total number of subscribers, there are persistent predictions that calls for the additional launch of mid-range 5G plans will intensify. The government and consumer groups have been demanding a variety of pricing plans, citing that the mid-range 5G plans introduced by the three mobile carriers last year limited consumer choice.

As the Ministry of Science and ICT has stated that it will strive to alleviate the burden of telecommunication costs on the public, the key is how to find common ground this year. With the three mobile carriers taking a passive stance, citing concerns over deteriorating performance, it appears necessary to have discussions on how to make it beneficial to present reasonable and effective rate plans to consumers.

■ SKT Fiercely Expands Business, Including Mega AI

The three major mobile carriers are staking everything on business expansion by consolidating their ICT capabilities, such as AI and the metaverse, and focusing on platform, content, and media businesses.

As of 2022, SKT has secured 13.39 million 5G subscribers, with 5G users accounting for more than 50% of its total customers. Based on its five major business groups—wired and wireless telecommunications, media, enterprise business centered on data centers and cloud, and AIVERSE business—SKT continues to strengthen its business competitiveness in content, advertising, and commerce by leveraging AI technology.

'T-Woozoo' has surpassed total product sales of approximately 570 billion won, and 'Ifland', a metaverse service that began its overseas expansion last December, attracted more than 10% of its total MAU (monthly active users) from overseas in December.
SKT is actively pursuing the transformation and leap forward into an 'AI Company.' It is enhancing 'A.dot,' its first Korean-language GPT-3-based growth AI service, by integrating it with mega-AI models such as ChatGPT. It is scheduled to be equipped with 'Multi-modal' technology next month.

In addition, SKT has formed the 'K-UAM Dream Team Consortium' to participate in domestic UAM demonstration projects and is preparing for the commercialization of UAM in 2025. It has a partnership with Joby Aviation.

■ KT and LGU+ must put out the most urgent fires first

KT Group, which recorded 8.45 million 5G subscribers accounting for 62% of total subscribers, launched its media content business in earnest last year. The company announced that it recorded 25.4% revenue growth year-on-year across its various business sectors, including content, advertising, and commerce. KT Studio Genie recorded separate revenue exceeding 100 billion won and an operating profit of 9.6 billion won in its second year since establishment.

KT is also strengthening its AI-related capabilities and services. In the first half of this year, it plans to commercialize 'Midum,' a massive AI that aims to understand and empathize with human emotions, and expand it into a model with 200 billion parameters by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, KT has a more urgent priority to address than its massive AI business.

The KT Board of Directors confirmed current CEO Ku Hyeon-mo as the candidate for the next CEO at the end of last December, but due to external noise, it announced on the 9th that it would reopen the recruitment process for the next CEO through open competition. On the 10th, a notice was posted on the company's website seeking a CEO to lead the company from 2023 through the regular general shareholders' meeting in 2026.

This appears to be driven by the demand for new governance improvement measures in line with recent ESG management trends. KT announced that it will continue to strive to build a corporate governance structure that is recognized externally, including reviewing the status of the CEO appointment process and enhancing fairness and transparency.

The number of LGU+ 5G subscribers reached 6,059,686, an increase of 1,440,629 from 2021, and surpassed 1 trillion won for the first time, following other mobile carriers.

Last October, LGU+ developed 'ixi,' an integrated platform referring to AI services that help connect people. It also plans to apply the ultra-large AI 'ExaOne' to its platform services.
LGU+ is focusing on its entire business area, including solutions, corporate lines, and IDC, as well as new B2B businesses (smart mobility and smart factory). On the 2nd, it partnered with LS Electric to expand smart manufacturing innovation business targeting small and medium-sized enterprises.

In addition, on the 13th, it signed a business agreement with Planar, a domestic developer of hybrid-based VTOL electric propulsion aircraft, for joint research on communication-based UAM data transmission. LGU+ is participating in domestic UAM demonstration projects with Kakao Mobility, GS E&C, and others.

Meanwhile, LGU+ is facing a crisis ahead of its business expansion. Efforts are underway to resolve the security damage caused by the internet outage, which is presumed to be a DDoS attack that occurred on January 29.

On the 4th, LGU+ announced on its website that recovery was complete through measures such as blocking attacks and diverting traffic, and that it is preparing for additional attacks. Although the immediate crisis has been averted, a series of setbacks, including personal information leaks and internet network outages, have caused massive damage to consumers, making the enhancement of LGU+'s corporate image a critical issue.

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that it would expand the special investigation and inspection team to conduct an in-depth inspection of the information security response system, while also pointing out the inadequacy of the basic intrusion response system.