Competition grows over ‘edge cloud’ computing market in Korea

With telecom companies here accelerating efforts to process massive data at faster speeds since the launch of the fifth-generation cellular network, competition in the cloud edge computing market has intensified.
The country’s major mobile carriers have announced plans to install cloud computing systems at the edges of their 5G networks. Most recently, KT said Sunday it had established such platforms at communication towers in Seoul and Busan.
Combining cloud services with edge computing, the cloud edge system boosts the network’s processing speed by minimising latency. It does not have to go through a centralised data centre, which is a standard for standalone cloud computing.
“Depending upon the need for data processing, the cloud edge system in Seoul and Busan can share the burden and reduce latency,” KT said in a statement. “Previously, all data had to be processed at a central data centre in Seoul and its surrounding area.”
The country’s biggest mobile carrier, SK Telecom, has also joined the fray with a pledge to launch a cloud edge system within the year. During a shareholders meeting in March, SKT chief Park Jung-ho said the company would work with global cloud companies to launch the service.
The world’s leading cloud service company, Amazon Web Service, has entered the edge computing market with a service called “Greengrass”. Microsoft has boasted its technological prowess with the product Azure Iot Edge.
Given that these global companies have dominated the local cloud service market, the mobile carriers’ latest efforts to combine cloud services with edge computing are designed to create a niche market, according to industry watchers.
“It’s hard to say that edge cloud is a core component of cloud computing,” said an official from a cloud computing company in Seoul. “It is difficult to catch up with global giants in a short period of time, so they want to divide the cloud market into many parts.”
While there is no specific data on market share, industry watchers estimate that AWS accounts for about half of the Korean cloud service market. Samsung, LG and other conglomerate have adopted AWS cloud computing for business management.
Currently, the Korean mobile carriers’ efforts to use cloud services are largely aimed at offering subscribers better access to 5G-based content. By installing cloud systems at their mobile edge computing centres, the carriers expect this to dramatically reduce latency.
For example, KT said its cloud edge computing system allows for speedy streaming of live sport games. Viewers can watch content up to 10 seconds faster than those not using cloud edge computing.
“The previous version of edge computing was mostly focused on hardware,” said a KT official. “Cloud edge computing is more about software. … By installing cloud services at our mobile edge centre, users can watch YouTube footage much faster than before.”