The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that it will hold the 2018 ICT Technology Commercialization Festival at COEX (1st floor, Halls A3 and A4) in Samseong-dong from May 23 to 26.

This event is a platform for ICT (hereinafter 'ICT') technology exchange designed to facilitate active meetings between technology providers, such as government-funded research institutes and universities, and technology users, such as companies and venture capital firms, thereby supporting the linkage of government R&D results to commercialization.

The Commercialization Festival consists of a technology exhibition, a marketing venue, and a policy communication venue, and has established itself as a festival for ICT technology commercialization attended by approximately 100,000 people annually, including industry, academia, and research officials as well as general visitors.

At the exhibition, pavilions for the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), the Electronics Technology Institute (KETI), the Korea Venture Business Association (KOVA), and the Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA) have been set up, and a total of 127 institutions and companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-sized companies participating in the ICT R&D voucher program, will showcase 168 successful cases of technology commercialization in areas such as 5th generation mobile communication, artificial intelligence, cloud, and big data.

In the marketing section, plans include hosting 'Promising Technology Briefings' and 'Technology Transfer Consultations' by the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) and the Korea Electronics Technology Institute (KETI), a 'Virtual Investment Attraction Competition' to provide opportunities to strengthen investment attraction capabilities for companies seeking commercialization funding, and 'Technology Finance Consultations' for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and venture companies.

In the policy communication forum, the 'Technology Commercialization Success Case Presentation', the 'Technology Standardization Forum', and the 'ICT' promoted by the Ministry of Science and ICT to support the strengthening of R&D capabilities of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and middle-sized companies We will hold public hearings and other events regarding the 'R&D Innovation Voucher Plan'.

This year, a special 'Fourth Industrial Revolution Pavilion' has been opened to provide an opportunity to satisfy the public's curiosity about the Fourth Industrial Revolution by allowing visitors to directly experience technologies and services such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality.

In addition, it supports the strengthening of investment attraction capabilities for SMEs by hosting a 'Virtual Investment Attraction Competition,' and provides employment opportunities for young talent by organizing recruitment counseling sessions hosted by government-funded research institutes, public institutions, and participating companies.

Kim Yong-soo, Vice Minister of Science and ICT, stated, “We will spare no continuous support so that domestic small and medium-sized enterprises can grow sustainably through the successful commercialization of ICT technologies and become leaders in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”