Initial focus is consumer internet of things solutions
Korean telecommunications firm LG Uplus has opened the country’s first store exclusively dedicated to home internet of things (IoT) and internet television services, local press reported.
The new store is located in the city of Incheon. LG Uplus said it aims to open additional stores to sell IoT and internet television services this year, according to the report.
“With the new store, we can now provide a hands-on experience of our U+tv and home IoT services to consumers and promote how the services are changing lives in households,” LG Uplus Home Marketing Division Vice President Song Gu-young said. “We will continue to come up with differentiated concepts of store design to maximize customer satisfaction.”
The Korean telco said that it is currently leading the domestic home internet of things service market, with approximately 460,000 subscriptions. The telco is focusing on establishing partnerships with builders and home interior design businesses in order to be in a better position to compete with rival operators SK Telecom and KT.
In the internet television market, LG Uplus, currently holds a 8% market share.
LG Uplus’ new store in Incheon was designed like a model house in order to demonstrate the company’s smart home services, according to the report.
In the U+tv demonstration zone is a 75-inch ultra high-definition television and a sofa to make it look like an actual living room, while IoT gas lock and smart plugs are set up for demonstration in the kitchen sector, the company said.
LG Uplus ended the third quarter of 2016 with a total of 12.3 million subscribers in the mobile telephony segment.
The telco initially launched commercial LTE services in 2011. LG Uplus currently offers 4G LTE through spectrum in the 850MHz, 2.1GHz and 2.3GHz bands.
LG Uplus is fully owned by Korean conglomerate LG Corporation, the parent company of electronics manufacturer LG Electronics.
