Eyes must be wide open

The technology world is abuzz with smart innovations. Heated competition over handheld and mobile entertainment has moved into living rooms. Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics unveiled smart TVs at the Internationale Funkausstellung 2010 - a consumer electronics exhibition in Berlin.

They set out to conquer more of the uncharted waters of the TV realm after dominating LED-screen and 3D panel markets. Samsung took a pre-emptive move after Google and Sony announced a partnership to introduce a smart TV based on Google’s Android platform. Steve Jobs also launched an Apple TV product in the hopes of keeping up with the consumer fad over its mobile phone and tablet devices.

Although varying slightly in features and function, the smart TVs are all pitched as new bombshell devices that can revolutionize home entertainment just as smartphones and tablets have done with phones and computing systems. Korean players may have had a late start in smartphones, but their advanced TV technology give them an edge in the new market.

Smart TV won’t just broaden Internet capability technology but will likely reshape the entertainment landscape.

A remote control that works like a magic wand will allow viewers to check news and weather reports while watching films or playing games on the same TV screen. The viewers can connect to various interactive Web services like Facebook and Twitter while shopping online. The magic remote control combines TV programs, Internet features and connectivity all into one package.

Unlike the Internet, the TV realm doesn’t have country or district codes. For instance, a Korean viewer watching an American TV program can connect to an online shopping mall to search and purchase the clothes and accessories the American entertainer is wearing.

TV will no longer function as a program broadcaster but rather as a window to a boundless world of information and entertainment.

The key to smart TV lies in the availability and accessibility to quality media content. The viewers and clients are in all parts of the world.

The content must be aimed at the global market. Otherwise local content providers will be wiped out by foreign players.

The licensing of new broadcasting and news providers must look beyond local competition and have eyes set at the broader global market. The digital momentum can either revive the Korean Wave or kill local media. The media world is changing at dizzying pace. The government, companies and the media industry must open their eyes wide to keep up.