South Korea: High-tech hothouse

"Korea is only 4 percent the size of China, but it has a leading IT infrastructure," said M.C. Kim, general manager for Intel Korea. "It is a good place for a test bed. Once it is developed, it can go easily outside."

The idea of selling more upscale consumer electronics also took root during this time, with a particular focus on the export market.

The South Korean government plays a fairly active role in shaping the direction of industry, though it has begun to resemble Washington in its approach toward business since recovering from its economic crisis. The country invested directly in companies in the 80s but today mostly encourages development by funding research and creating incentives.

At the same time, South Korean officials often appear more technologically savvy than their Western counterparts. For example, the Seoul government has begun a $7m (£3.85m) pilot for open-source software Linux in its offices -- a decision that came directly from the top.

"The president made orders on this himself," said Daeje Chin, the chief minister of the Ministry of Information and Communication and the former president of Samsung Electronics.

The public beta nature of South Korea's technology consumption can be seen most vividly in cellphones. The replacement rate on phones runs an estimated six to 18 months. Competition among manufacturers to bring a new model to market is intense, companies say.

As with all beta testing, some ideas flop. One service that failed was video over cellular networks that cost $260 to watch a 90-minute programme. The cell phone as TV remote control and handheld videoconferencing have not fared well either.

The phone itself, however, has become a powerful e-commerce tool for South Korean services that are only in the test stages in Europe and North America. Many people get on the subway or settle bills in restaurants by swiping their phones through payment machines. This summer, a bank will start to let customers transfer money between accounts using their phones.

"In 1995, (Microsoft chairman) Bill Gates was talking about wearable computers, but I don't think that people realised then that it would be the telephone that would do these functions," Qualcomm's Park said.