The Three Major Telecom Companies' ICT Win-Win Efforts... Maintaining 'Top Excellence' Grade from the Shared Growth Committee

'2020 Dongbanseongjang Index Evaluation'
SKT, Best for 9 Consecutive Years
KT and LG Uplus Also for 7 Consecutive Years

SK Telecom announced on the 15th that it received the highest grade for nine consecutive years in the '2020 Win-Win Growth Index Evaluation.' Photo by SK Telecom

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] The three major mobile carriers received the highest rating of 'Excellent' from the Win-Win Growth Committee for their efforts to foster a mutually beneficial ICT ecosystem.

According to the telecommunications industry on the 15th, in the '2020 Win-Win Growth Index Evaluation,' SK Telecom maintained the top rating for the ninth consecutive year, while KT and LG Uplus each maintained the top rating for the seventh consecutive year.

The Win-Win Growth Index, announced by the Win-Win Growth Committee since 2011, evaluates the achievements of mutual growth initiatives between large corporations and their partner companies. It is calculated by combining the 'Comprehensive Win-Win Growth Evaluation' conducted by the Win-Win Growth Committee and the 'Fair Trade Agreement Compliance Evaluation of Large Corporations' by the Fair Trade Commission. This year, 36 companies (17% of the total) received the highest rating.

SK Telecom, Honorary Excellent Company

SK Telecom is one of two 'Honorary Excellent Companies' that have maintained the highest rating for nine or more consecutive years among 210 evaluated companies.

Its win-win cooperation initiatives include ▲operating a 133 billion KRW Win-Win Growth Fund ▲running the 'Immediate Payment' program for SMEs ▲industrial innovation consulting ▲operating the Win-Win Growth Academy and an online recruitment center for business partners.

The Win-Win Growth Fund is a system where SK Telecom contributes funds deposited in banks, and the interest earned is used to reduce loan interest rates for business partners. Since 2004, through the Immediate Payment program, SK Telecom has paid cash for deliveries to small and medium business partners regardless of the payment amount, helping smooth cash flow management.

SK Telecom also supports service development by business partners and external developers. It shares key assets such as T map in API form and supports the full deposit fee for entrusting SMEs' core technical information to a third-party reliable institution to prevent technology leakage damage.

KT, Supporting Overseas Expansion and Technology

KT received the highest rating for seven consecutive years. It was recognized for efforts such as ▲supporting global expansion ▲activating joint projects with venture companies ▲supporting COVID-19 recovery ▲strengthening technological competitiveness for small and venture partners.

To assist partners' global expansion, KT has provided opportunities for over 150 small and venture companies (including duplicates) to participate in major overseas ICT exhibitions from 2013 to October 2020, resulting in cumulative export contracts exceeding 100 billion KRW.

KT announced on the 15th that it received the highest grade for seven consecutive years in the '2020 Win-Win Growth Index Evaluation.' The photo shows the opening ceremony of the 'Gwanak S Valley Startup Center.' Photo by KT

Since 2017, KT has been running 'Biz Collaboration,' which discovers business items that can collaborate with competitive startups and matches them with internal KT business departments from the idea conception stage to jointly commercialize projects. This year, 23 projects were discovered, including wearable robots for musculoskeletal disease prevention. To revitalize the startup ecosystem, KT, together with Gwanak-gu and Seoul National University, established the venture startup cluster 'Gwanak S Valley' centered around Daehak-dong and Nakseongdae-dong. It also operates a win-win cooperation fund, Tomorrow Filling Deduction, and an online recruitment center.

To strengthen SMEs' technological competitiveness, KT cooperates in new technology development such as 5G-based Wi-Fi 6 router development through joint R&D projects. Through the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' 'Caring Company' agreement, KT also supports digital transformation activation in non-face-to-face fields such as smart factory dissemination.

LG Uplus, Operating Win-Win Payment System and Growth Board

LG Uplus also received the highest rating for seven consecutive years. As part of its win-win growth activities, it pays 100% of transaction payments to small and medium partners in cash and provides early payment for partners experiencing financial difficulties, contributing to liquidity and financial structure stabilization.

In cooperation with Industrial Bank of Korea, LG Uplus operates a 'Win-Win Growth Fund' that offers low-interest loans and an 'Interest-Free Loan Support' program that provides funds needed for partners' new product development through loan methods. It also provides a 'Win-Win Payment System' where large corporations issue bonds that first-tier partners can use to finance second-tier partners, allowing cash conversion at banks based on the large corporation's credit.

Additionally, LG Uplus has adopted and implemented the 'Four Major Practices for Compliance with Subcontracting Laws' established and revised by the Fair Trade Commission to ensure fair transactions with partners. To build a sustainable supply chain, it requires adherence to ESG-related codes of conduct in standard purchase contracts. The 'Win-Win Growth Board,' a consultative body composed of key partners by industry, has been operating for nine years since 2013.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.