South Korean mobile carrier Union Mobile launches blockchain project

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The blockchain race in South Korea is heating up, with several of the country’s largest companies launching blockchain projects in recent months. The latest is Union Mobile, a mobile carrier in the East Asian nation, which announced the launch of its blockchain project Wednesday. Dubbed ELYNET, the platform is designed to provide Union’s users differentiated mobile services, the company stated in a press release.

ELYNET will target users who currently use a single carrier for telecom service. It will enable its users to use data services without the challenges that the existing carriers encounter including roaming fees and contracts.

The company stated, “The ELYNET project effectively eliminates the need for expensive data centers for wireless communications, allowing users to enjoy superior telecom quality at dramatically lower costs.”

Union Mobile also hopes that the ELYNET project can help it to gain a sizable market share in the Korean telecoms market. The market is dominated by three companies, with Korea Telecom leading the pack with close to 50% market share. LG U+ and SK Telecom are the other two major operators.

Seyong Ro, Union Mobile’s CEO explained how the ELYNET ecosystem will function stating, “When users connect to the communications network through ELYNET’s own operating system, they can purchase data through ELyX, a token used in ELYNET’s ecosystem, and freely enjoy mobile data communication anywhere in the world without roaming fees or contracts.”

Just recently, Korea Telecom unveiled a 5G-based blockchain platform known as GiGA Chain. The platform will focus on leveraging blockchain technology to enhance security for the Internet of Things industry. GiGA Chain will function as a Blockhain-as-a-Service (BaaS) product and will target enterprises that would love to integrate blockchain technology but can’t afford the cost of implementation.