ABSTRACT
The Korean government has placed a high priority on developing Korea’s own indigenous technological capabilities and creating a world-class industrial infrastructure by the year 2001. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Korea’s electronics industry consisted mainly of assembly plants that manufactured common consumer electronics. A good deal of the technology crucial to the success of the Korean electronics firms historically has been transferred from other countries, primarily the United States and Japan. In the Korean semiconductor industry, the phenomenon is apparent — similar to that of the Japanese industry — of close government and industry cooperation in order to meet national goals. Korean electronics chaebols are investing heavily in foreign ventures. Korean companies are seeking to develop products specifically for the European market. Industry welcomes government support in semiconductor equipment development, since Korea has no indigenous equipment supplier base.
