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Sohee Kim
For Sohee Kim's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
South Korean pop group BTS perform during the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards on April 3, 2022.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2024
Universal Music to distribute BTS and rappers in new Hybe deal
As part of the agreement, the companies will collaborate on artist promotions and marketing activities in North America.
Fans of Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani outside the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Wednesday.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 22, 2024
MLB games streamed to skeptical South Korean fans herald global shift
There’s still no dominant sports broadcaster or streamer that serves all of Asia, and that means that there will be fierce competition.
Fans cheer during a friendly match between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Kiwoon Heroes ahead of the Major League Baseball Seoul Series in Seoul on Sunday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 18, 2024
MLB brings Shohei Ohtani, season openers and big dreams to Seoul
With a set of stars from the region, 2024 is turning out to be baseball’s moment in Asia.
Crunchyroll, now owned by Sony Group Corp., is setting its sights on India as a major growth market.
LIFE / Digital
Jul 15, 2023
Former piracy site Crunchyroll cashes in on anime's global appeal
Crunchyroll expects the anime industry will have more than 800 million fans globally by 2025 outside markets in China and Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 7, 2023
Samsung announces cut to memory chip output after worst profit since 2009
Operating profit plunged more than 95% to 600 billion won for the three months ended March, missing the average analyst estimate, while sales also fell.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 4, 2022
Samsung launches five-year plan to tempt U.S. buyers with smaller chips
The company, based in the city of Suwon, South Korea, is the world's largest chipmaker by revenue, but its foundry business is playing catch-up with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 23, 2021
He built an $8.9 billion fortune. Then the controversies began.
Bom Kim became the poster child of a new kind of wealth generation in South Korea with Coupang Inc., but the firm is now facing criticism over working conditions.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 18, 2021
SoftBank-backed Karrot becomes $2.7 billion South Korean unicorn
Asia's fourth-largest economy is breaking away from family-controlled conglomerates and minting self-made billionaires faster than ever.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 16, 2021
SoftBank invests $1.7 billion in Yanolja ahead of IPO
The deal will boost Yanolja's valuation to more than 10 trillion won ($9 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jun 11, 2021
Samsung boss could be set free by one of his biggest critics, Moon Jae-in
The dramatic reversal reflects South Korea's claustrophobic politics, where government leaders and big business are so dependent on each other that favoritism can trump the law.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
May 13, 2021
South Korea unveils $450 billion push to seize global chipmaking crown
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix will lead more than 510 trillion won of investment in semiconductor research and production in the years to 2030 under a national blueprint devised by Moon.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 25, 2020
Lee Kun-hee, who transformed Samsung Electronics, dies at 78
Lee built the company into the electronics powerhouse of today, becoming synonymous with the rise of South Korea on a global economic stage.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 5, 2020
SoftBank backs 29-year-old’s venture aiming to become Netflix for fiction
Radish's growing stable of in-house soap-opera scriptwriters conceive new episodes in various genres every four or six hours.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 12, 2020
Shock 'Parasite' Oscar cements South Korea's status as a cultural powerhouse
South Korea's status as a cultural juggernaut just got a serious shot of international credibility.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 3, 2019
Boeing embarks on mission to restore tattered reputation with doubtful airlines
After two fatal crashes in five months involving its best-selling 737 Max jet, Boeing Co. sent a team to reassure airline bosses of its focus on safety at their annual gathering in Seoul. They faced a tough crowd.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jan 16, 2019
'Baby Shark' driving you crazy? Its creator warns penguins are next
"Baby Shark (Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo)" is the YouTube sensation that's been viewed more than 2 billion times and made the Billboard Hot 100 chart last week as its top new entrant. The jingle has also become such an earworm that late-night-show host Jimmy Kimmel proposed throwing those responsible in jail for life.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Apr 1, 2018
K-pop stars turn diplomatic envoys with concert dates in North Korea
They won over buttoned-up investors at a banking conference with their jingles about teenage love, but the K-pop girl band Red Velvet is about to face what may be its toughest audience yet: North Korea.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 13, 2018
5G is here: Super speed makes worldwide debut at Winter Olympics
The first to experience the future of wireless technology, well before most humans, will be South Korea's wild boars. That's because 5G, the fifth-generation wireless network, is making its worldwide debut at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores