Movie Downloads to Mobile Devices in 43 Seconds? It’s Coming … to South Korea

Variety ^ | 06/26/2013 | Marc Graser

[TexGrill]

In the very near future, smartphone users in South Korea will be able to download a full-length movie in 43 seconds.

South Korea has long boasted the world’s fastest Internet connections, but the country is now looking to offer its citizens the world’s fastest wireless networks, as well.

SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest mobile operator, will launch a next-generation mobile network that offers twice the speed of its current LTE network and 10 times that of 3G services. The plan is to roll out the service in Seoul and 40 other cities. The network will only work on LTE-A capable smartphones like Samsung’s Galaxy S4. Around 60% of South Korea’s 33 million smartphone users use LTE networks, which will be available in 87 countries — including the U.S.– by the end of 2013, according to GSA. South Korea’s faster LTE-Advanced network can transfer 150 megabits per second, and an 800 megabyte movie in 43 seconds. The country’s existing LTE network can download a movie within 80 seconds.

[TexGrill]

Global business tip

[Gay State Conservative]

So what? Who wants to watch a video on a mobile device?

[TexGrill]

It’s popular in China. I take the subway every day and you see many people watching videos on their mobile devices.

[nascarnation]

Who wants to watch a video on a mobile device?

Well last Saturday I was stuck viewing this Shakesperean play (don't ask) and the "watch ESPN" app was great for Nascar at Road America.....

[WVKayaker]

So what? Who wants to watch a video on a mobile device?

Ever heard of an iPad? How about a laptop with a wifi personal hotspot?

I travel on long airplane flights (I now live in the Philippines). I watch movies on my iPad all the time... as well as read books, and surf the internet (when I have a connection).

I hate to miss my FreeRepublic fixes!

[UB355]

I save and replay some of my favorite movies on mobile. A tiny Brittany Daniel as Brandy looks just as good in Joe Dirt.

[GeronL]

i cannot watch anything on a tiny screen. So maybe a Galaxy 5 then. lol

[jimsin]

WELL WELL WELL and SO WHAT as well
...we here over here are puttin OUR money in useful things like like....electric cars n stuff ...next you’ll folks’ll be sayin the taxpayers never should a been made to fund that super care THE VOLT and that SOLYNDRA CO was started up to it was a big hit to ...a big hit right in the kiester...i guess....i think we need new management i wonder if one of them s.koreans might want to re locate at all...

[palmer]

I say “so what” because I don’t download and watch anything except an occasional short clip, nor do I believe any large quantities of downloaded data are useful except for maybe filling NSA’s storage servers with useless crap.

[Jack Hydrazine]

There are a couple of good South Korean movies to watch.

71 In To The Fire
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_mpaBHVn0k
Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGfOK5ZHnP4

The Man From Nowhere
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38rPoGSr19U
Movie: http://www.hulu.com/watch/278635

Both have sub-titles.

[CitizenUSA]

We had fiber optic in Japan. They were running fiber directly into homes. It wasn’t expensive, and everything, phone, TV, and internet, ran at amazing speeds off the one fiber connection.

Here in the US, I asked my cable guys when we’d have fiber. They laughed and said it was too expensive. I’d love to know how stringing copper cable all over the place is less expensive than fiber optic.