SK Telecom signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Dongbu Daewoo Electronics, one of the nation’s top three global electronics companies, on Dec. 15, to launch home appliances connected to smart home services.
Under the agreement, the two companies will connect Dongbu Daewoo’s best-selling drum washer Mini with SKT’s smart home service first. The Mini is the world’s first wall-mounted drum washer released in 2012 and was selected as one of the top 10 leading products in the Chinese washer market in 2015, gaining popularity overseas. As it is also becoming popular in the domestic market among single households, those newly married, and households with children, the Mini has recently surpassed 100,000 units of accumulative sales at home.
The new Mini connected to smart home tech will be on the market by the first half of next year. It can be remotely controlled by SKT’s smart home app, and offers additional convenience by offering informing the end of laundry and the washing index connected with the weather.
SKT has already signed a MOU with the nation’s large global electronics companies – Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics – for smart home technology, and is working together to develop commercialized products. With the latest MOU with Dongbu Daewoo Electronics, the company is expected to expand the base of the smart home platform further.