WEBZINE
ISSN 2671-891X
Vol.3 No.2, 2021
Dear members of the Korean Institute of Communications and Information Sciences (KICS): KICS, which began this year with the slogan “Leading the digital innovation in preparation for the COVID-19 situation and the post-COVID-19 era,” is closing the year with many impressive achievements fueled by its members’ participation. Once again, I would like to thank all of you and share the results of our activities, both online and offline due to COVID-19, which were more successful than ever.
The KICS Summer Conference 2021 was held on June 16-18, 2021, at Ramada Plaza, Jeju Island, Korea. More than 1,200 researchers participated and made over 740 paper presentations. Considering the current COVID-19 pandemic, the conference was held in a hybrid manner. All the main events were simultaneously broadcast through YouTube to all participants and the regular presentation sessions were operated live on Zoom. Additionally, posters and undergraduate sessions were presented via recorded videos. The attendees who participated in person enjoyed the events safely by following COVID- 19 prevention and quarantine guidelines.
The 12th International Conference on ICT Convergence 2021 was held as a hybrid event via online platforms, such as Zoom Webinar, Kakao TV, and YouTube at Jeju, Korea on October 20–22, 2021, under the theme “Beyond the Pandemic Era with ICT Convergence Innovation.” ICTC 2021 is one of the major international conferences in the area of ICT convergence, organized by the Korean Institute of Communications and Information Sciences (KICS) with the technical cosponsorship of the IEEE Communication Society and IEICE Communications Society.
The KICS Fall Conference 2021 held on November 17–19, 2021 at The Ocean Resort, Yeosu, Jeonnam Province, Korea was a big success. More than 900 researchers participated in the conference, with over 540 paper presentations. Until last year, the KICS Fall Conference was a one-day event. This year, the conference was extended to a three-day-long event to cover a variety of programs. Considering the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic situation, the conference was held both in person and online, similar to previous KICS conferences held earlier in the year. The main events held at the venue were simultaneously broadcast to all the participants to ensure their immediate access to the conference.
KICS (President: Young-Han Kim, Professor of Soongsil University, https://www.kics.or.kr) held an online joint symposium of three institutes on Friday, October 8. The event has been held in a circular manner since 2009, and this year, under the theme “Future Prospects and Policy Directions of the Broadcasting and Communication Industry for Digital Transformation in the Post-Corona Era,” it was mainly organized with three presentation sessions and one discussion session. The three member institutes are KICS, KABS (Korean Association for Broadcasting & Telecommunication Studies), and KATP (Korea Association for Telecommunications Policies). This event was sponsored by the telecommunications operators LGU+, SKT, and KT.
Since its registration with SCIE, ICT Express (ISSN: 2405-95955), an international journal of academic studies published by the Korean Institute of Communication and Information Sciences (KICS) (President: Younghan Kim, Soongsil University Professor), the nation’s largest telecommunications and network research organization, achieved its first JCR IF (Impact Factor) of 4.317. This is an excellent achievement, ranking it 22nd (Q1 grade) among 91 SCIE-listed journals in the field of telecommunications.
The Korean Institute of Communications and Information Sciences (KICS) has entered into an MoU with the University of Surrey’s 5G/6G Innovation Center (5G/6GIC) on August 31, 2021. KICS is hopeful that the MoU will pave the way for research collaboration for Beyond 5G/6G technologies between researchers in KICS and Surrey’s 5G/6GIC. This MoU was signed to strengthen cooperation and discover ways of collaboration between the researchers for sharing ideas and conducting joint research on Beyond 5G/6G.
Our institute held a council meeting on November 5, 2021 (90 council members pre-voted and 100 of them voted on site in accordance with the COVID-19 quarantine guidelines) to report on the 2021 project and elect the 2022 presidency.
On Friday, December 3rd, the 17th Haedong Awards, the 3rd KICS Fellow Awards, and the year-end party were held at the Crystal Ballroom on the 3rd floor of the Convention Center at the K Hotel Seoul. In accordance with COVID-19 Guidelines, those who have received a second dose of vaccine were allowed to participate.