SEOUL, KOREA – With the presidential election about one month away, the IT and electronic industries are showing excitement regarding the establishment of a ministry in charge of information, communication technology (ICT). Under these circumstances, the Ministry of Information, Media and Economy was suggested as a ministry to promote the ICT sector of Corporate Korea.
The Korea Institute of Information and Telecommunication Facilities Engineering (Chairman Seong-man Kim) held a fall seminar under the theme of “ICT Ecosystem for New Creative Convergence and New Government ICT Policies” at Seoul Education and Culture Center in Seoul on November 20. In the seminar, the participants discussed the need of the next government to establish a ministry which will specialize in ICT.
The participants include lawmaker Eun-hee Kwon of the Saenuri Party, Yu-seok Yang, director of the Korea Communication Agency, Jae-su Yang, general secretary of the Smart Gyeonggi Forum at Dankook University, Jeong-wook Lee, chairman of the Korea Information & Communication Supervision Association and Seung-jun Lee, a manager at the Korea Specialized Engineer Council.
“The next government should carry out innovation tasks around a ministry in charge of ICT,” said Hee-jun Song, a professor of public administration at Ehwa Womans University under the theme of “The Next Government’s Policies on ICT Ecosystem and Governance.” “Otherwise, the domestic ICT environment will face its desertification before long.”
Professor Song suggested a ministry that covers contents, platforms, networks and devices, tentatively named “the Ministry of Information, Media and Economy.” Song’s suggestion also aims to establish a public company to offer mail and parcel services and manage the combination of the Broadcasting and Communication Development Funds and the Information and Telecommunication Funds.
“To realize the fast and efficient growth of the ecosystem that covers contents, platforms, networks and devices, an independent and specialized government organization will be more suitable,” said Kim Dong-wook, director of the Korea Information Society Development Institute while announcing a plan to restructure the government's structure on information, telecommunication and contents.
Kim proposed that the Korea Communications Commission should change itself into a semi-independent regulating committee of the ministry in charge of ICT. A broadcasting regulation committee should be established in the ministry and re-permit broadcasting licenses, evaluated re-approved broadcasting, recommend and appoint executives at public broadcasting companies and handle TV subscription fees, Kim emphasized.
Some voiced that they were concerned with negative side effects from the establishment of the ICT-specialized ministry. With the current government system, ICT-related matters were separated into the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Knowledge Economy. So, both ministries may become less specialized in ICT matters. As a result, the ICT sector can be disregarded,” said Jae-su Yang, a professor of the Graduate School of Information and Media at Dankook University. “An independent ministry should prepare a system to respect creativity and a free market, ease regulations and support companies and have policy balance not to intervene in the market too much.”
