LIVE FROM MOBILE ASIA EXPO 2014: Chang-Gyu Hwang, CEO of KT, this morning talked up the potential for operators to benefit from the growth of the internet of things (IoT) market, by evolving networks to support the new range of services and connected devices that are proliferating.

“Convergence among industries will be accelerated through innovative technologies. Development of sensors, chips, the expansion of connected devices, the evolution of the mobile broadband network, cloud computing and big data analytics, these are all key drivers that will bring us to a smarter IoT era,” he observed in a keynote presentation.

“We have to differentiate our services by utilising network assets such as identification, security and billing capabilities. In the IoT era, more devices and applications and services will require interworking. To meet these requirements, we need to reinforce the platform to be versatile,” he said.

Underpinning this is KT’s “GigaTopia” vision which, according to reports earlier this year, the company is set to invest $4 billion to support.

This strategy has three elements: upgrading the network to support Gbit/s speeds; creating an IoT platform on top of that; and delivering convergent services to its customers.

“Through this, KT will evolve from a network operator to a smart enabler,” Hwang said.

“If everything is connected on Giga infrastructure, the world will become a place with great safety, comfort and happiness,” he proposed.

And the executive also called on the industry to work together, with mobile operators needing to “play a leading role in setting a defacto standard” for IoT services.

“GSMA must take the initiative to boost the IoT ecosystem. KT is open to sharing our experiences and making contributions. Let’s move forward together for co-prosperity,” he said.