The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 20th that it will promote household support and digital safety policies under its jurisdiction to alleviate household burdens and ensure safe digital usage in celebration of the Lunar New Year.
To ease the burden of telecommunication costs on citizens and enhance consumer welfare in this era of high prices, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced the 'plan to strengthen the competitiveness of budget mobile phones' on the 15th. It plans to significantly reduce data wholesale prices to allow budget mobile phones to design and launch their own unique rate plans and to enhance trust in budget mobile phones through stricter information protection obligations. Additionally, it will implement a certification system for secure transactions of used phones to create a safe trading environment.
The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to provide free video calls during the Lunar New Year holiday so that people can communicate with distant family and friends without the burden of data charges.
To lower the cost burden of holiday shopping, a '2025 Post Office Shopping New Year Gift Event' will be held from the 6th to the 30th of this month. Working with 53 local governments and public institutions, it aims to secure over 1.5 billion won in budget to offer about 3,200 high-quality local agricultural, fishery, and livestock products at discounts of up to 50% through the Post Office's online shopping mall and platforms like Gmarket and 11th Street.
Additionally, local channels operated by cable TV will guide and support local small businesses that struggle to find markets by selling regional specialty products. Furthermore, to allow families to enjoy science culture together, five national science museums under its jurisdiction in Daejeon, Gwacheon, Gwangju, and Busan will be opened for free during the Lunar New Year holiday period. Various science cultural exhibitions and experience events, including explanations of the constellation related to the Year of the Snake and traditional games, will be available at each museum.
During the Lunar New Year holiday, to prepare for the expected surge in communication traffic in places like highways and terminals, pre-checks on communication quality will be conducted, capacity at base stations will be expanded, and measures will be taken to ensure server capacity in anticipation of increased digital service traffic. Furthermore, an online/offline response system will be operated 24 hours a day to respond immediately to any disruptions.
Additionally, throughout January, checks will be conducted on important information and communication facilities such as telecommunications, value-added communications, and data centers, assessing vulnerabilities and measures against increased traffic in preparation for winter. The Ministry will internally inspect facilities prone to accidents like laboratories and expand emergency personnel to ensure a prompt response to emergencies during the holiday period.
Furthermore, in conjunction with the Office of the National Assembly, the Korean National Police Agency, and the Financial Services Commission, messages warning of smishing, hacking emails, and illegal money lending targeting approximately 47.47 million subscribers of the three major telecommunications companies will be sequentially sent from the 13th to the 27th to prevent cyber fraud, which typically spikes during the holiday.
To ensure a more impactful household policy, on-site communication activities will be strengthened. On the 15th, Minister Yoo Sang-im of the Ministry of Science and ICT encouraged cooperation among platform companies and listened to their opinions at a Coupang logistics center in Dongtan. On the 16th, he visited small and medium-sized enterprises that are actively promoting AI and digital transformation in the manufacturing sector, using the R&D results from the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) to encourage AX (AI transformation) and technology commercialization.
Additionally, on the 21st, it requested cooperation to increase user benefits through competition in subsidies following the repeal of the bundled phone pricing law by visiting the Gangbyeon Techno Mart. Especially with the upcoming Lunar New Year, on the 16th, he visited the Changwon Post Office to urge the prevention of work-related accidents among postal workers. On the 23rd, he plans to visit social welfare facilities (Yeongrak Borinwon) to deliver supplies and monetary donations directly.
Minister Yoo stated, 'Even in these challenging times, we intend to mobilize our resources to contribute to household stability for a joyful and safe Lunar New Year.' He added, 'In particular, this year, more than 70% of the budget will be executed in the first half of the year to support the public in leading comfortable lives as quickly as possible.'