Top S.Korean mobile carriers fined $25.4 mn for false ads on 5G speed

Seoul: South Korea’s antitrust regulator said on Wednesday it has decided to fine the country’s three mobile carriers a combined 33.6 billion won ($25.4 million) for their misleading advertisements on the speed of the fifth-generation (5G) network services.

The move came after SK Telecom, KT Corp. and LG Uplus exaggerated the performance of their 5G network services, with their advertisements providing speeds that can only be observed in a limited environment, according to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC).

“The three mobile carriers have delivered false or exaggerated information on their services’ speeds by deceiving consumers that they can experience 20Gbps speed, which is only a target in theory for the 5G technology,” the watchdog said in a statement.