SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- KT Corporation (KRX: 030200; NYSE: KT), South Korea's largest telecommunications company, is expanding its strategic partnership with Thailand's Jasmine Group as part of efforts to explore growing business opportunities in the Southeast Asian and other global markets.
Kim Youngwoo (left), KT’s global business head, poses with Somboon Patcharasopak, JTS president and director, for a photo session after signing a strategic collaboration agreement for IDC business development, in a video conference at KT’s Gwanghwamun Headquarters in Seoul on September 23.
In a latest of such efforts, KT signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Jasmine Telecom Systems (JTS) last week to develop a new internet data center (IDC) business in Thailand. JTS is the IDC business unit Jasmine Group, a leading Thai telecommunications network operator. KT is the top IDC operator in South Korea.
"This IDC business partnership with JTS is a great opportunity for KT to prove its business capability in the global market," said Kim Youngwoo, head of KT Global Business. "We are ready to expand our outreach to global markets through our endeavor in Southeast Asia, which is a newly emerging IDC market."
Under the agreement, KT and JTS will prepare to enter Thailand's IDC market by late half of 2021 to provide high-quality services to global cloud service providers. The two strategic partners will share their knowledge and experience in IDC projects; develop financing strategies and new business models; propose IDC solutions to global cloud service providers; and undertake IDC-related cooperation for technology and solutions.
"The hyperscale data center and cloud service business will be a foundation to add value to Jasmine Group's network business. Through joint development of IDC business, we look forward to long-term cooperation with KT," JTS President and Director Somboon Patcharasopak said.
The strategic partnership between KT and Jasmine Group has expanded based on their shared interest in the growth potential of Thailand's IDC market. In March this year, KT signed a US$19 million contract with Jasmine Group's another affiliate, 3BB TV Co., to provide commercial IPTV (Internet Protocol TV) service in Thailand.
The data center market is growing rapidly in Thailand, driven by government digital transformation initiatives and higher participation by enterprises of all sizes. The ASEAN data center market is expected to grow at an annual rate of some 16 percent in the next five years, led by the emerging markets of Thailand and Indonesia, according to a recent study by Frost & Sullivan, a global market research company.
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KT Corp., Korea's largest telecommunications service provider, is leading the new era of innovations in one of the world's most connected countries with 5G, Big Data, Cloud, IoT, Blockchain and other transformative technologies. KT launched the world's first nationwide commercial 5G network in April 2019, after showcasing the first trial 5G services at the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games in February 2018. To help cope with COVID-19, KT is staging a social campaign, dubbed "Ma-Eum:TACT (Heart to Heart)," providing technology supports for people and businesses in need. KT will deliver most essential and innovative services and solutions to its customers around the world as the first frontier in the next technology revolution and number one Global ICT Company.
