It appears the rumblings of severe financial trouble at VK Mobile were true, the Korean Times is reporting VK Mobile has filed for bankruptcy. Cutthroat competition and currency fluctuations hit profits and the company was recently unable to pay on its debt. Creditors have put VK on a debt workout program.
The entire Korean mobile phone manufacturing industry is under intense pressure. An analyst with Korea Investment & Securities believes that there is room for only a couple of competitors:
Roh projected only Samsung Electronics, the world's third-largest cell phone maker, and the fourth-largest player LG Electronics will survive among Korean firms. That means the nation's No. 3 vendor Pantech will also likely fail.
US MVNO Helio carries two handsets, one each from VK Mobile and Pantech.