As a South Korean: #1 very timely video. Tomorrow (Nov 17th) is college entrance exam day, which many will move on to prepare for the Samsung test mentioned. (GSAT) Samsung also has programs that recruits bright students from various universities. #2 South Korea is dominated by conglomerates because it was always a war economy, and will be until Korea is unified. Samsung, Hyundai, Hanwha, LG etc all take a part in producing weapons, ammunition, military vehicles etc. Only when you have massive industrial plants and complexes like the ones conglomerates own can the entire economy be focused on mass production of whatever becomes necessary, and make the transition at the flick of a switch. Having a small number of conglomerates was also a key component of Korea's state-led economic growth. Samsung investing in electronics wasn't its own doing but its allotted industry, ordered by the government. Even now long-term decisions in which future industries to invest in are often decided beforehand, so companies minimise wasting investment/R&D money competing for the same market. #3 I do not think Samsung's dominance will continue for long. Its prestige and superiority is based on the international market, which is currently being competed by many firms. Samsung CEO also has a drug problem and may not be too focused on how to keep the company dominant globally long term. And given very small size of South Korea's domestic demand, losing intl market will make Samsung suffer. Addendum: 한국인들이 계속 한국인 맞냐, 내가 아는거랑 다르다 하는데 어디서 틀린걸 말한건지 모르겠음 1) GSAT: 가장 많은 구직자들이 보는 시험이 되었다. 상반기 하반기 각각 9만~10만 명 정도 응시해, 대한민국에서 치러지는 시험 중 4번째로 큰 규모를 자랑한다. 2) 한국경제는 전쟁경제체제다: 당연함. 법률적 기반은 통합방위태세와 국민총동원령, 경제적 기반은 재벌체제임. 박정희 대통령은 1967년 '제2경제론'을 제시하며 제1경제와 제2경제를 공식석상에서 드러냄. 이는 물질적 측면의 제1경제와 다른 정신적 측면의 제2경제라는 명명으로 ‘총력전론’에 따른 사상전력화의 의미를 띄며, 언제든지 총력전에 들어갈 수 있도록 만듬. 재벌체제로 전쟁때 제일 필요한 철강, 조선, 전자 등 수출 주도형 중공업을 육성한게 그래서임. 지금도 한국경제는 동일한 사업으로 먹고 살고. 경제가 중소기업 주도가 아니라 대기업/재벌 주도로 가면 전쟁동원, 군수산업화, 전쟁경제정책 등 모든게 더 수월해짐. 3) 삼성의 영광은 오래 갈 거 같지 않다: 알아서 뉴스 보도록
Thanks for the info! I always liked Samsung products until I met their big appliances (fridges, laundry machines, etc) they just don't have the durability I expect.
Honestly, at least in the US, Samsung only really competes with Apple. The other brands (especially phones), dont even come close. Motorola for example is touting a big screen, the ability to take 4k videos, and a 50mp camera (with a backup wide view and macro lense). The Samsungs either have had those features for years (like 4k videos), or simply do it better (better quality and larger screens.) The absence of Chinese phones here means you either get a pretty basic smart phone made by Google, Motorola, etc, or you get a good phone by Samsung or Apple. There isn't really a phone with Samsung's quality that is sold at a lower price point. TVs are a bit more competitive, but competition is still pretty slim, maybe 3 other companies. Basically, there is no competition to challenge Samsung, and potential challengers seem years behind.
The Samsung Group is a larger group than you might think. Not only Samsung Electronics, but each of its subsidiaries, such as insurance, bio, battery, display, finance, medical, sports, and food, has great competitiveness within the industry. It's not just that one "Galaxy" accounts for 20% of South Korea's GDP.
They're also deeply in the military industrial complex. They were involved in American Self Propelled Guns ( essentially artillery on armored chassis) M109s that were license built in South Korea and the newer domestic K9 Thunder.
Half correct and half wrong Not every students want to go Samsung. It's about positions and quality. And almost every companies in S. Korea have their own specialties. Beside Samsung(semiconductors), there are many decent companies in South Korea. They've got Hyundai (car, ship, construction), LG (batteries, display, home app.), SK(energy, battery, semiconductors), Kakao(IT), POSCO(steel), GS(refining), Lotte(chemical & distribution), Doosan(construction) etc. South Korea has dominated various industrial fields such as semiconductors, home appliances, display, batteries, ships, cars, refining, constructions, even softpowers, weapons etc.
I am Korean and I am very amazed by how accurate this convoluted riddle was explained. Although I would say, it is bit exaggerated about all Korean people want to get into Samsung. It is a stable job with a good pay but that doesn’t mean it is the best.
@@suriowl This reminds me of how upper middle class Americans [I'm from such a family] think of university. The "Ivy League" - mostly Harvard / Yale / Princeton - has the prestige. But not all families care all *that* much for the Ivy League, nor do their children. So some [like me] will aim for others. But there are a limited number of others. So, for a Korean equivalent: maybe the family thinks Samsung is overrated, but they'll still try to aim their child (and it may only be the one child) for Hyundai. Failing that - what. Japan? The US?
As a Korean, I cannot completely agree that Koreans students and their families are fixated to become a "Samsung Man". That is only half-correct. After South Korea's IMF crisis in 1997, social interest has moved from being a company man to more stable jobs (i.e. medical doctors or dentists, lawyers). In the 1980s and 90s, being a loyal company man guaranteed a long career and stable life. Nowadays such social nonverbal agreements are non-existent, and more and more students are turning for other jobs. The young generation study their high school years to be admitted to a prestigious university and get a respectable job. The South Korean job market is heavily focused on office jobs, and one of the routes just happen to be working for Samsung. The Samsung test (GSAT) is popular not only because it's a Samsung recruit test, but also because it's a standardized private test. This makes job application processes much more clear-cut. That why the GSAT is so popular. Also there isn't a strong "hierarchy" of companies, unlike your portrayal of Korean society. There are strong conglomerates in each industry, and Samsung just happens to be a major player in most of them. An automotive engineer would apply for Hyundai-Kia motors, and a software engineer would apply for Kakao Inc. It all depends on what field you are job searching. I just wanted to point out some wrong interpretations on our society. Thanks
@@user-cb8qc3gy8e Samsung electronics를 빼놓고 스타필드, CJ, Emart만 봐도... 한국사람들은 삼성 이병철회장 플랫폼 속에 살고 있는거 아닌가요... 레미안도 삼성계열 아파트이구. 삼성이 문제는 아니죠. 삼성과 같은 기업을 한국이 또 키워내는데 실패했다는 점이 문제겠죠. 삼성과 동급의 기업이 많고 많았다면 비율적으로 삼성도미넌스가 아니었을텐데.
I don't even see what the problem is It doesn't match the narrator's expectation of how life should be, so therefore it's bad. Typical neo-liberal imperial attitude...
Have a look at the Wallenberg family in Sweden. They own roughtly 40% of swedish companies through majority shareholder power, as well as outright owning the swedish stockmarket (the servers housing the stockmarket). They also hold about 50% of swedish GDP in wealth. They should make for an interesting video
In some ways, getting employed by Samsung or any family-run multinational companies in South Korea is almost like becoming a worker of a stable public service job in some countries: job security and pensions are guaranteed as well parents will be gleefully happy & grateful knowing that their grown-up children are working in one of the chaebol companies that promises lofty benefits.
@@kalakalaiand3343 That's for the upper rank white-collar job positions. I wonder if R&D and production line workers get hefty bonuses and employment benefits as well
@Zaydan Naufal Also known as government-linked companies (GLC) in some countries. Chaebols on the other hand are fully private companies, but they have stable and solid connections to the SKorean govt ever since the early years of South Korean independence thanks to generous contracts to supply much needed machineries, vehicles, chemical products et cetera.
As a Korean, buying Korean domestic products is not just because of the brand royalty. A/S is very fast. Because their market domination is large and there are so many branches, so when my LG laptop, Samsung phone, or Hyundai car has a problem, I can fix it on the same day by visiting the brand shops at very low cost. I also used an HP laptop, and it took one month to repair. Apple is one of the few exceptions because many people use them to get the AS fast. and people like to buy foreign luxury bags because those things do not have repairing problems, usually. In conclusion, when people consider their budget, quality and A/S period, they usually conclude to buy the Korean product, even though foreign products seems to be better
Whenever I buy a Korean product I always seem to experience many issues very early on in their lifespan compared to products from other countries. Why is that so?
Interesting topic. Not long ago I visited South Korea and I couldn’t help to notice how fast things are being built and how modern the country is. When I did a little research I was stunned when I found out how much Samsung has invested in the country.
@@bababababababa6124 agree. I haven’t watched the video yet (it’s saved for later) everywhere I looked there were buildings/facilities etc going up. Even near the location, I was staying in there was a building going up.
This was one of the most interesting and gripping episodes you've ever made. The logistics of corruption tempered by pragmatism. I was glued to the screen.
@@KevinJohnson-cv2no Do you believe that Samsung having a vice-grip on the people of SK is a net benefit? SK citizens are educated, industrially minded and in a position to do something themselves. The US has had megamonopolies like Samsung does, the famous one being the Rothschild's oil empire. I can't imagine Samsung being split up is a bad thing in the long run.
@@GSNRecords I'm just saying it's a bit of stretch to call it corruption when it is literally the primary driver of national growth. If Samsung wasn't a corporation I doubt people would be so quick to assume their moral high-ground.
You know how powerful Samsung is? LG announced last year they would stop making smartphones because the cost of production hit a breaking point for them. Samsung now owns a monopoly on the phone industry in Korea. Monopolies are so bad that when Kia hit some hard times, Hyundai bought them out. That's right. Hyundai continued the Kia name, but they own the Korean car industry too.
Too big to fall is a term for failing entities which samsung is far from. On the contrary samsung group's corp tax makes up 2 digit percentages the all national corp tax. Its natural that the person who provides has a big say/influence over the family imo.
Geographically speaking, all four "East Asian Tiger" economies should be poor. Yet Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan are considered "miracle economies."
@@Nelsonwmj They didn’t exactly have the time to industrialize over 2 centuries like west Europe or 1 century for America, so they have a very old population and low birth rates. The factor which allowed them to industrialize quickly such as working a lot consequently leads to depression and little time for other pursuits.
@@ac1455 They're like a company that keeps an old practice just because it's what brought them success in the past, but never bothers to examine if it's still efficient to keep doing that. Their workaholism is so deeply ingrained in their culture that I doubt it's even removable anymore.
And now that China is high on that Tiger Juice after that first Hong Kong hit, they are definitely targeting the other 3. Wealth leads to military power, and they know it. And they intend to conquer every penny of it along the pacific rim. Starting with shipping. The moment they feel wealthy and untouchable enough to move on Taiwan, they will have their attack dog NoKo move on SoKo. Which they will then depose and take for themselves. Then it's on to Singapore. From there, no stopping them all the way from India to Australia & Japan.
Samsung is legit too big to fail, not "the country would be in deep recession if it fail" more like "the country as we know it WILL collapse without it"
@@PickyPaige The profit incentive is absent when the state takes control of an industry, which means that there may be a loss of efficiency, and a rise in inefficiency. This means that management might be inefficient in comparison with similar firms in the private sector. Samsung will slowly lose quality and get replaced with Apple or Huawei
Chaebol influence in South Korea really does run deep, especially in the economic and political aspects. From what I have researched, 50% of South Korean Gross Domestic Product (GDP) consisted of the country's Top 5 largest chaebol conglomerates (Samsung, LG, Hyundai, SK Group, and Lotte). Granted, thanks to policies by the Rhee, Park, and Chun presidencies/dictatorships, these companies receive government support under conditions of export requirements, in turn making the Korean economy of today. The influences chaebols have can dictate certain government policies to favour company interests. Edit: Minor mistakes on my part, apologies. I revisited my sources once more, it's not GDP that represents that "50%", rather it's half of South Korea's stock market value. Chaebols represent half of it.
@@shibasurfing they make more money, simple as that. A lot of them have close ties to government making it easier for them to deal with any regulations or tax laws which gives them a competitive advantage in terms of pay over smaller enterprises. Smaller businesses fill in the gaps that are not served by the bigger corps.
My living grandmother (born in 1934) clearly remembers not only the days long before samsung was even heard of, but also the days before Korea was divided into North and South when it was ruled by Japan. Seeing a young child today, it's mind boggling to think how much things will change over their lifetime.
I was really surprised when I found out the sheer size and influence the Samsung company had. It's almost enough to classify them as a nation in enough of itself.
@@Je_QzcY3mN0 Samsung with all its subsidiaries combined is worth more than Apple. Samsung the main phone branch is nowhere near Apple, but every company that has a little Samsung in their brand added together beat Apple.
As a Korean I feel it's not a healthy structure in which a single company has so much effect on country. There are other large corporations but Samsung definitely takes large part in daily life. I live in an apartnemnt constructed by Samsung. Majority of appliances at my home are Samsung, my insurance is Samsung, I graduated University whose foundation is Samsung owned, I do my shopping on online mall owned by Samsung. If Samsung somehow collapsed it would shake the foundation of my daily life
Have you ever heard of the phrase too big to fail😅. The korean govt. No the IMF bank wiuld be first in line to shore thrm up. So rest easy. You hv hedged your bets wisely in this case
@@RL.Baba09 you must be too young to remember 2008 financial crisis. Too big to fail is definitely real even in a BIG economy such as the US. The US government used taxpayers' money to bail out certain banks which were on the brink of collapse because their failure would have probably kickstarted another great depression. In the case of South Korea, how far do you think the Korean government would go to protect Samsung, which controls over 20% of the GDP?
@@corvusglaive5769 Bankrupt itself to save it. It sucks that a corporation has that much power. I would say it’s borderline dystopian, but Samsung has done a good job of controlling (or hiding) its desire to be extremely greedy.
My university professor claimed that the investigation that led to former S Korea's president Park's impeachment was triggered when a university student questioned how Park's friend Choi's daughter was able to get an 'A' for a university module despite skipping some lectures
Well your prof must be a monky because that’s not what happened nor can a simple bribery for a daughter of a close friend of the president lead to an investigation that big lol
I tried to be a samsung man too as a Korean, went and graduated from prestigious university in Korea, acquiring profession-related certificates and license and I've failed. So I tried out bit-o-lesser conglomerate and I just can't get used to this stiff and strict office hierarchy. so I quitted my job after around a year and half. Now I am an english teacher in Private Korean English Institute (aka Academy or Hak-won) and my university friends stopped calling me ever since; probably because I am a failure haha.
1. you are not a failure. 2. your country kinda is though. one single company shouldnt have this kind of power. why? cause when it fails the entire country fails. thats not sustainable, eventually it WILL fail. 3. everyone needs to go their path as long as you PERSONALLY (not from the outside but you yourself) are happy with what you do its fine. in a way you have a higher chance of going out unscathed, because if samsung fails, then all these employees will be fucked.
I'm an American currently living in South Korea. It is insane how much brand loyalty there is here. Literally every phone in the country is a Samsung (I've never seen so many foldables in my life). Every single car on the road is a Kia or Hyundai. Every appliance is an LG or Daewoo. And Lotte and Kakao are everywhere too. I've lived all over the world and never seen a country so loyal to its own brands. It's actually kind of admirable.
Also they seem to act to products much more fanatical like they own a share of the company's stock when 50 percent of Korea's wealth are owned by less than 0.001%
@@Jason-tx2xc Not just tariffs. The products produced by domestic suppliers for domestic markets is extremely consistent and reliable to meet the cultural trends and demands that are exclusive to a very homogenous ethnic/cultural group. Even if tariffs were gone tomorrow, Koreans will still favor domestic products for most of their needs.
@@andrewofaiurthey should be forced to open up their markets really. Well, not forced they are a sovereign nation but reciprocal tariffs should be implemented. They are too rich for charity.
1:16 Imagine being told "hey, you know your fish & noodle store? Take good care of it, it's gonna be driving Korea's entire fucking economy in about 70 years"
That's the entire problem with Capitalism. "Enterprise over Nation." We used to call that Treason. It's not pragmatic. It's PR nonsense to justify the continuation of the dynasty. No one's leadership is absolute. No one is irreplaceable. Anyone of decent intelligence can run a company. Break up monopolies! The U.S. did it decades ago, and we were fine. (17:53)
@Zaydan Naufal which is not bad, I'm homeless in the USA yet I'm fat as heck and everyone is giving me free burgers.. Nothing that charitable exist in 3rd world nations, but hey I'm a dumb hobo what do I know?
Its interesting how they hold so much power over politics in South Korea and yet they haven’t lobbied to have the inheritance tax removed or significantly decreased. I doubt most South Koreans would object.
Perhaps it's to their benefit. If they can avoid that tax only because of their size and influence over South Korea, they'll hold an advantage over companies without the same benefits.
@@Kefkaownsall the thing is, that inheritance tax applies to everyone, I doubt working class people like having 50% of their shit taken away every generation and I doubt they’d be in favor of that just because of some petty resentment toward Samsung.
He's saying they can't run countries effectively in a way that prioritizes the well-being of its citizens. When push comes to shove, Samsung would throw every South Korean into a volcano if it would double their market cap.
You know for a nation to economically grow the money should come from outside... Samsung makes it. Apple makes it for US Daimler Inc makes for Germany. etc etc... It's nothing wrong if they're keeping their countries "running".
My nephew had his phd scholarship at UCLA, On his last semester, Apple, Samsung, Toyota were lining up to to hire him. He ultimately chose Samsung cause of its start pay of $168K start salary plus benefits. All of this at only 25. He now lives in Korea, married an Australian cutie with 2 kids...Samsung will take care of you if you treat it like family.
Well, good for him. Hope he's enjoying it. But yeah, I heard apple treats their employees like trash. Definitely made a good choice. Actually thinking of getting a Samsung soon.
I recently watched the Vice documentary about the cancer victims at the Samsung Electronic factory and how Samsung, the government, the Ministry of Labour and the police all worked together for 11 years to take the victims to court and try deny what they did. Of course there was very little payment compared to hospital costs, court costs and labour fees paid (11m split to dozens of families) with no one sepping down or any change being made to stop corruption like that happening again.
@@petesmitt Yep. This video is about Korea if you haddn't noticed. Maybe Wendover can make a video about Trade Unions around the world and their historical impact and decreasing power because of government policies in the next video.
@@CM_CM_ I don't understand comments like @pete smitt, they go with tu quoque everytime a criticism comes up. Its basically a five yr old going "but he gets to do it!!"
@@lamia197 Whataboutism is always very popular online - maybe they're new to learning all countries have levels of corruption and wanted to share who know haha
@@lamia197 Yet here in America I'm still waiting for public transport to be improved. Every other developed country has fancy high speed rails meanwhile our best system is Amtrak... We don't got ANY of the cool shits. 😔
There's nothing inherently bad about what they did, if anything they're forced to do so by the system. Suppose the politician or the chaebol refused to do the criminal action but then plunge the country into economic down spiral and drag the rest of the world into economic down turn, causing many economic and social unrest, unemployment, increase in criminals, deaths etc Would they be hailed as heroes because they refused bribery? Or would the world beg them to do it if we could go back before that alternate history?
Real Life Lore, Polymatter and Wendover Productions have a >20% influence on the gross domestic production of UA-cam's world politics explanation videos, and their coalition should really be kept in check to prevent excessive dependence /s
South Korea's long term problem is that their fertility rate is unsustainable and Samsung or other major corporations don't seem to have done anything to promote settled family life, if anything doing the opposite and working people beyond the ability to devote any time to children. In the long term this will either cause a productivity crisis, a tense political situation due to mass immigration, or force leaders to engineer a sort of agreement or even union with North Korea in order to make use of their underutilised workforce.
The whole thing is predicated on their ability to predict their own deaths. They'll always be one heart attack/plane crash/stepped on a lego at 3am/rock in their shoe/wet sock/OD away from dissolution.
If your rich and well connected enough, your untimely death can be covered up for months ala Weekend and Bernie's as long as it's not something like a high-profile plane crash. In those months the family can quickly prepare and reevaluate their positions to maintain control.
His father is rumored to have died many years ago, but not official declared so. So yes, they can 'predict' their own deaths, in the sense that they can control when they're official considered dead and hence liable for paying for the inheritance tax.
@@pjz7088 I'm sorry but Arasaka still has to take the spot on this one, they literally have a flying aircraft carrier, and an army that can rival the united states government, god knows what kind of shady tech they possess. but yeah I'm really glad that they're not real 😅
Those young people need to remember not to bite the hand that feeds them. As you said, Samsung doesn't need South Korea, South Korea needs Samsung. Those young people haven't thought about what life in South Korea without Samsung would be like.
@@titanicisshit1647 tell you what: when you create a company as successful as theirs, then you get an opinion. Until then, enjoy your useless meaningless life.
Samsung isn't just an electronics giant as many outside of South Korea view it. It's in insurance, heavy engineering, real estate, banking and finance, recreation, healthcare, precision equipment, military technology, and so much more. That's how influential a chaebol (conglomerate) gets in both societal, economical, and political spheres in the country, and why South Korea is more or less an oligarchy (don't forget LG, Hyundai, SK, and Lotte) based on how much economic leverage these 5 companies alone have over the entire nation.
I mean every "Democracy" are multiple one of these : -Oligarchy -Electocracy (A form of representative democracy where citizens are able to vote for their government but cannot participate directly in governmental decision making. The government has almost absolute power. Only "democratic" country that wasn't an Electocracy was Switzerland Pre-Covid) -Electoral Autocracy (A hybrid regime, in which democratic institutions are imitative and adhere to authoritarian methods. In these regimes, regular elections are held, but they fail to reach democratic standards of freedom and fairness.) -Aristocraty (A system of governance where political power is in the hands of a small class of privileged individuals who claim a higher birth than the rest of society.) -Kraterocracy (Rule by the strong; a system of governance where those who are strong enough to seize power through physical force, social maneuvering or political cunning.) -Netocracy (Rule by social connections . A portmanteau of Internet and aristocracy, netocracy refers to a perceived global upper-class that bases its power on a technological advantage and networking skills) -Particracy (Rule by a dominant political party (or parties).) -Plutocracy (Rule by the wealthy; a system wherein governance is indebted to, dependent upon or heavily influenced by the desires of the rich. Plutocratic influence can alter any form of government. For instance, in a republic, if a significant number of elected representative positions are dependent upon financial support from wealthy sources, it is a plutocratic republic.) -Corporatocraty (Rule by corporations; a system of governance where an economic and political system is controlled by corporations or corporate interests.) -Kakistocracy (Rule by the worst; a system of government where the least-qualified citizens govern or dictate policies.) -Kleptocracy (Rule by thieves; a system of governance where its officials and the ruling class in general pursue personal wealth and political power at the expense of the wider population. In strict terms kleptocracy is not a form of government but a characteristic of a government engaged in such behavior.) -Nepotocracy (Rule by nephews; favouritism granted to relatives regardless of merit; a system of governance in which importance is given to the relatives of those already in power, like a nephew (where the word comes from). In such governments even if the relatives aren't qualified they are given positions of authority just because they know someone who already has authority. -Bureaucracy (Rule by a system of governance with many bureaus, administrators, and petty officials.) So for example France (My country) is an Oligarchy ,Electocracy ,Electoral Autocracy ,Aristocraty (Not by Higher birth but by a certain "Education") ,Kraterocracy ,Netocracy ,Plutocracy ,Kakistocracy ,Kleptocracy ,Nepotocracy and Bureaucracy . South Korea would be a Corporatocraty Edit :Only country that you could call real democracy in the last 2000 years are Swizertland (Pre-Covid) and San Marino ,maybe Liechenstein too ,but that's all .
All the more reason for companies founded by people of Korean descent to set up headquarters in South Korea and significantly lessen the Big Five's economic strangehold (so to speak).
@@plumebrise4801 There is no such things as real democracy. Because most people are dumb. A full democracy can only lead to chaos. You need to give power into the hand of the smart one to keep thing in order
Actually, Lee Kun-Hee's son made 'a mistake' in one of speeches, calling his father 'my late father'. It was several years before Lee Kun-Hee's actual official funeral. Yes, Samsung requires necromancy to keep its house of cards.
yeah totally never would've seen that coming eh. sucks that with such high stakes, corruption is practically necessitated. I despise corruption and would love to see a better Korea, but the government simply doesn't have the capability to at this point, and hasn't for a long time.
As an ex-Sr. VP at Samsung, their success is largely tied to their work ethic. I watched in amazement how aggressive they were in innovation. They have no patience for those who don't produce.
South Korea's government directed industries are a pretty interesting case study. I was very impressed by their planned initiatives to evolve into a media powerhouse. SK is sort of a capitalist oligarchy with central planning and an insane focus on education.
South Korea is evidence that a monarchy is the superior form of the government, Samsung has been past down from the guy who founded it to his son and so on even today the Lee family controls it.
This is also interesting. With the extreme focus on education, it can help leave them flexible in case of failures and downsizing. If you have a population of engineers, programmers, lawyers, etc; they can flex and build an equally effective growth area without a brain drain that can be invested in by remaining companies and the government. Like many other first world companies, valuing education and investing in it literally provides resilience for your country. To counterpoint that, the Soviet’s had quite decent education but very little option for growth or advancement, but they were spread out and their culture and melting pot of many ethnicities was quite different. I’m just pondering but I’m sure many academic papers have been written about these concepts. Either way, end of the day, as long as you don’t live in a hopeless backwards and outwardly oppressive society, education is an extreme key to success.
All i can conclude is they really did it for their small nation. Unlike us Indians where we have sheitload of population and No QUALITY. Nor EQUALITY. I am always fascinated by how much the far East Asians are way ahead in level of thinking, Sincerity, Education & technology. I mean the Japanese could've easily kept bragging and crying about Murican nuclear bombing, but they Fking built thier nation.... _That's just amazing for me personally_
@@br0k3nman 'Some Lessons from the East Asian Miracle' by J.E. Stiglitz (1996) provides a decent overall summary, while being relatively short, if you want to a starting place to the sub-genre of developmental economics that's trying to understand (and replicate) the success of the Asian Tigers.
It's crazy that I've known about all the events you mentioned for years, but never has any article actually explained how all these pieces fit together, how Samsung was behind the whole thing.
The news is like the worst place to find out what's actually going on. It's great at telling you the latest thing to happen but god help you if you haven't been reading every update every day from the start.
Samsung is just a part of korea economy. Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
As a Korean, It contains biased perspective in samsung. We consider it as one of companies in Korea and of course We don't underestimate Samsung. But What I want to say is Korean's life goal is not entering Samsung. It is just one of it. Except that I think this video is quite good
Samsungs antics with the government reminds me of how the kings of old would give their own governments the run around to put through whatever measures they wanted to put in
Samsung isn't the only large company in S.K. Briberu is a thing of the past. Gaving a horse as a goft and donating to the sports foundation is a birde?
Chaebol is the romanization of 재벌 which means "wealth clan". This word can be written in the same characters as the Japanese zaibatsu (meaning financial clique), as both these words have Chinese roots. The Japanese zaibatsu (or keiretsu nowadays) were powerful monopolistic conglomerates of pre-war Japan, with four big ones. Sumitomo, Mitsui, Yasuda, and the most famous being Mitsubishi. They were broken up by the GHQ (General Headquarters; another name for the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers during the American occupation) but later on loosely reconstituted.
"Corporations can't run Countries" to which the United Fruit Company says: "Hold my banana" Hanwha is the new kid on the block. They're pretty old but recently have made huge gains in the market and closed in on the likes of LG and Samsung. They're not as close as Samsung's sister companies but their weapons production group dominates the market. They've also purchased Samsung's weapons and systems arm in the early 2010s. I think we'll see many scandals or controversies surrounding their operations for years to come. They basically have a chokehold on the south Korean arms market and even surpasses the revenue of Raytheon and Lockheed Martin etc. in some markets. Since this was a Wendover Productions video I was surprised that there was no mention of the fact that the Samsung group also once made planes (Samsung Aerospace), and built airports (Samsung C & T Corp.) 😅
What I felt while living in Korea To the Korean people, Samsung has a strong image as a national team that represents Korea and earns foreign currency in the world market rather than dominating Korea.
Depends on who you interacted with in Korea. Plenty Koreans hate the Lee family's guts. Especially given that Samsung has a pretty murdrous history in opposition to labor unions, which the country effectively pardoned (similar to the murder of civil rights leaders by the FBI). The image of Samsung as the 'national team' is one of the main litmus tests for whether you are left-/right-leaning (often correlated to whether or not you were born rich) in Korea. I don't know who you interacted with, but its' likely they were upper class, right-leaning individuals.
@@cea6770 I respect your opinion. It is natural that the impression of a particular object differs from person to person. However, I have not seen a single Korean cheering at the news that Samsung Electronics is losing to TSMC or Apple.
Renewed my subscription to Nebula for a second year, this year. Your documentary Extremities has been a joy to watch. Reminds me of the Discovery I grew up with. Great job!
Really good choice of using PolyMatter as the first creator in the Nebula ad, lol, if this was twice the length and went into even more detail this video could've been one of his :P Seriously, given the title and subject I did a double take at it being on Wendover.
One thing Samsung does to indirectly hold Koreans hostage, and to ensure they do their dirty deeds unimpeded is that almost every single young lawyer in Korea will at one point in their careers act as an attorney for a Samsung company in a legal procedure. So that if a private citizen would ever want to sue Samsung for whatever reason, finding a lawyer that would be able to sue Samsung is very hard, as most often there will be a conflict of interest. I live in Korea and we once tried suing Samsung Insurance over services not rendered, and our lawyer told us exactly that. Only the most bleeding heart left leaning Korean lawyers, of which there are very few, will ever represent you against Samsung.
It’s a smart and legal move. Like all conglomerates and big tech companies or any billion business in the world , they didn’t make to the top without using some shady tactics to avoid litigations and taxes. You may not like , it may be seems unethical , but at the end of the day it’s legal and smart 🤷🏾♂️.
Yeah that's pretty much spot on, you hit the nail on the head and that state capitalism mentality really took off in the 1960s when South Korea slipped into a dictatorship under Pak Chung Hee, the economy of South Korea quadrupled and rose exponentially under his administration but of course at great cost of human, privacy, and labor rights during his era It got so bad that he ended up being assassinated by the CIA _(Korea called it's own domestic intelligence agency the CIA as well during that time period, they've since renamed to the National Intelligence Service)_
well, it's not. you see, even the "greatest" chairman of Samsung Group can also go locked in prison if they made some faulty behavior against the law. Recently, it happened. and can be done.
1:06 i am afraid it is quite misleading to say that Korea’s drastic economic growth owes much to a single company samsung. “miracle of the han river” mentioned in the video is mostly about the country’s development in 70-80s. back then samsung was obviously one of the largest major companies but was not as dominant as today, nor was it the top either. until mid 90s hyundai was the largest but for political reasons + semiconductor sales samsung began to outperform hyundai in late 90s and became more dominant afterwards esp. from 2010s with smartphone galaxy business making good results globally. its that different.
Actually, Korean National Pension Service is the largest shareholder in most of popular Korean companies, just as Samsung group subsidiaries. Like Samsung, LG, Hyundai, and SK are facing same situations against Korean government. That's why Korean government has quite a lot of power to shake over 'chaebol' groups.
@@ThinkingMarion More of a war economy, since South Korea is still facing North Korea. And most of the men have gone through military service, and still kept as reserve forces. Very few outsiders know that Samsung and Hyundai also manufacture tanks, warships, fighter jets and missiles. One of the biggest conglomerates in Korea is Hanhwa, and it's name is litterally "Korean Gunpowder" in Korean. They own one of the tallest building in Seoul and have a baseball team. Crazy stuff
Looks like the other way around. From this story looks like Chaebol has power over government. Lee made the government short itself by agree to merger hence devalue its holding in C&T. Will not invest in Korea ever, no rule and law, like China.
There should be more credit given to the Japanese who made it possible for Samsung to even be able to make semiconductors and high tech electronics. Most of the technology is from Japan, and still comes from Japan. With US embargo on Japanese semiconductors, Japanese moved investment into Korea and Taiwan. The growth of Samsung and Korea is thanks to Japan and some US handouts.
"As a 'Samsung man,' I am aware that the fundamental memory technology was originally brought from Japan. The person who laid the foundation for Samsung Electronics, Jin Daeje, once said that Koreans are not capable of creating something from scratch. However, Japan's semiconductor technology collapsed due to their own significant issues; they had no efficiency at all and ultimately couldn't keep up with Samsung's efficiency. Efficiency itself is a form of technology. From this perspective, Japan's semiconductor manufacturing capabilities failed because they lagged behind in technology. And since Japan completely lacks this kind of technology, I deny the claim that 'most of it is Japanese technology.' For example, Elpida focused on 'craftsmanship' and neglected the concept of memory as a commodity. They obsessively implemented excessive inspection processes, choosing a cell process focused on performance over production efficiency, resulting in poor productivity. Samsung seized the opportunity created by the decline in Japanese semiconductor technology and engaged in a 'chicken game' with Elpida, leveraging massive CAPEX and faster entry into advanced processes as their weapons. Ultimately, Elpida, lacking a proper understanding of memory, went bankrupt and was sold to Micron's memory division."
And now, what do the Japanese claim to know about advanced processes? We are hearing reports that Japanese senior engineers at TSMC's Kumamoto plant are being ignored by Taiwanese engineers and are resigning in protest against the Taiwanese's coercion. If Japan truly had its own technological capabilities, we wouldn't be hearing such news. The Japanese semiconductor manufacturing industry, which had its wings clipped by a 'chicken game' at 40nm, has already become obsolete, and too much time has passed to still claim that it's Japanese technology. If we trace back the origins, then Fairchild could claim ownership of all IT technology in the world, couldn't they?
@@YnrmzdcbMost of your assumptions on the Japanese semiconductor industry is false. Japan had the technology and efficiency to make good semiconductors. It was the US that barred all shipments of Japanese semiconductors and that’s why the Japanese semiconductor industry deteriorated. Epilda focused on quality is probably what you mean. They are efficient, but also very diligent in producing quality products. Same with Kioxia (Toshiba Memory).
This video is quite a bit exaggerated or outdated in my opinion. Sure Samsung is still the biggest company in Korea, but newer generations are not that particularly bound to Samsung for their livelihood. I have a few friends who graduated and got jobs at Samsung only to quit and either freelance or start a business because it is more profitable that way, let alone not needing to get burnt out by the company's insatiable demands. Although the video states jobs in Samsung as stable jobs its far from true nowadays.
@@theaussiewhinger Samsung is a defintely solid choice in South Korea, but it isn't the best place. Many younger South Koreans take a work-life balance much more seriously, and Samsung wouldn't give that. Kakao can.
Totally agree from another Korean. Actually the Lee family's ownership got much more applauds than politicians. Many people don't want politicians to use Samsung to gain popularity. In the end, they agree to Samsung and Lee family's power as long as it is kept quietly and used rightly. Especially in this era of changes, people feel in need of concentration of power to survive.
I remember when samsung made cheap toasters and such in the 80s. It was one of the go-to brands when on a budget. It is unfortunate that they have become what they have become.
Hi, American living in Seoul here! I've been interested in this topic over the last year, since moving to Korea. Over here, it seems that this information is common knowledge to some, while others deny Samsung's connection with the government. We've heard "it's anti-Korea propaganda", "Samsung decides who stays in office", and anything in between. Thanks for the video, subbing for sure!
hey - I also lived in Korea and when I was there there was mostly positive views and most didn't seem to question Samsung's prevalence. One side of me hopes the public gets more and more critical of corporate power, while the other recognizes that a rise out of poverty so quickly is gonna inevitably have casualties.
Oh yeah. My A71, so a midranger, is incredible almost three years on. I've dropped it hundreds of times and even in the bath and there isn't one crack on it
Almost entire glory of modern AI world depends on chipmaking advantage, and this is not something a small mom-and-pop shop could pull out, no matter what. So many countries, especially the whole of Europe and Japan, are dying to have a piece of action in the HBM chips, but they simply cannot get in at all, being it the cumulative result of 50 years of pouring money into it. And South Korea, thanks to Samsung and SKHynix, holds 60% marketshare in chipmaking. This enables South Korea to be a leader in robotics, shipbuilding, auto, armament, etc. Do you even know South Korea uses upwards of 70% robots in making its vaunted K-9 howitzers and K-2 tanks, enabling it to produce in 1/50 the time it takes for Germany? We no longer live in the mom-and-pop analog world. Wake up and smell the digital coffee please.
Poor video. Lots of blowing things out of proportion. I for one must say I am disappointed in this video. Korea is a unique case of this level of economic success without utilizing the profits stockpiled from colonial conquest of other countries, how can anyone expect it to follow and use the strategies that are only viable to those colonial empires? There's a reason most of the world, colonies freed from empires weakening in WW2, are still poor. Wendover makes comparisons to US and Japan (a country with a 30 year recession + highest GDP to debt ratio after Venezuela) that are irrelevant. This video is ridiculous. It's like someone saying Taiwan will lose the global market and destroy Taiwan, just because its GDP is dominated by TSMC. And in greater proportion than Samung has over Korea. Did you know Samsung is responsible for 1/4 to 1/3 of Vietnamese GDP as it gave Vietnam the largest economic boom in the last 10 years? Do you know why these 2 countries succeeded when the rest of the world is still devastated by colonialism in the 21st century? It is because these 2 countries were mere FRACTIONS of great countries that used to teach Japan all its culture, technology, arts, in hopes to uplift them from samurai barbarity despite its invasions. Their destined progress was destroyed by an ungrateful Japan with a massive inferiority complex that led to arrogance and brutality. The late Emperor Akihito himself used to say according to Shoku Nihongi, he is also of Korean descent, and it is lamentable that Japan answered the kindly relationship with its neighbors with violence. He even scolded the Prime Minister Abe (descended from WW2 political families) to teach the proper history to the Japanese of their sins but he was ignored, because the position of postwar emperor is a powerless figurehead. When 35 years of Japanese colonial rule, stealing grain and driving living costs higher, arresting scholars for building private schools and making Korean dictionaries and kept literacy down to 20% where post war 1st Korean President raised it back to 80% in just 5 years, despite having to fight North Korea (and Communist China) where 90% of the peninsula's electricity was being produced at the time and was armed with Soviet T-34 tanks and ISU-152 which South Korea had 0. The 2 countires' destinies were further destroyed by communist takeovers caused by Japan's destruction and invasions, just like why only Eastern Europe was taken over by communists but not Western Europe due to German destruction. Hyperinflation, exploitation, massacres to hide war crimes, political vacuums, robbery, etc. is what caused the new post war governments to be contested by communist puppets. (Mao Zedong was about to be caught and executed if it weren't for the timely kidnapping of President Chiang because the Japanese were invading China without declaration of war with WMDs like mustard chem/anthrax germ bombing cities, and Mao used the time to spread lies that Chiang was lazy and only sending the communists to fight, when Soviet advisors to the CCP themselves testified that was completely opposite, that Mao kept avoiding conflict with the invaders and punished general Peng Dehuai for the only time the CCP army fought the invaders, because Mao wanted to save resources and manpower to backstab Chiang and his men after WW2, which is what he did: with 12 years of building popular support through lies, he ousted Chiang out to Taiwan in 1949.) But ofc both Germany and Japan were rewarded by America for being Axis powers though, and given huge cash infusions (2.3 trillion dollars in Afghanistan is a joke compared to the tech and money that went in there). It's obvious when post Cold War when US monetary support was pulled from Japan + had to answer for selling US tech to the Soviets again and again, Japan was exposed for being unable to stand on its own, both in the sense that without exploiting others/getting supported by others, just like why UK falters. Japan still suffers from a 30-year recession starting from the end of the Cold War and this is no coincidence. Common newbie mistake this Wendover is doing: just because you can stick 1 name on a big entity does not mean you can compare it to 1 entity among 100... 1 company among 10 does not so easily fall as easily as 1 in 100 small entities falling. This is like saying "The Silicon Valley has a dominant technological hegemony over America. Just break Silicon Valley and America will follow." without realizing that scenario pretty unlikely in of itself. This video is blowing things out of proportion. "Public dissent towards Samsung is growing in younger generations" this is totally unsubstantiated conjecture to drive a false argument. Samsung is still quite favorably viewed by the general public. _(A side note but some people point to these companies from delving into the defense sector as well like its supposed to be big news or alarming or a problem when it's pretty normal constantly being on the frontlines of imminent war. Does anyone criticize Israel for having a big defense industry and mandatory conscription due to being beset by foes on all sides, just like Korea? What about Norway? As for Korea, Japan still sends military ships to try to take Korean islands in the east, by the way, something not even China does.)_ And is there any reason countries' biggest companies should have as small a percentage as it does in America, when Korea is proof that the contrary can work? This video idiotically citing US and Japan like they are model economies? LMAO. Japan with its 30-year ongoing recession and failed "Abenomics" trying to print money and make the Bank of Japan take the debt (the late PM Abe literally said that's what he will do), kinda like how Japan took all the war bonds and sovereign-defaulted it right after WW2. Again, Korea is a unique case of this level of economic success without utilizing the profits stockpiled from colonial conquest of other countries, how can anyone expect it to follow and use the strategies that are only viable to those colonial empires?
Since Korea is a very small country and one of the poorest countries in the world, it was a good time for Samsung, Hyundai, LG, and other large companies to grow quickly, and the Korean government actively supported it. There was no choice at that time. Because we had to overcome the aftermath of the war. Because of this, it is true that Korea has grown rapidly, and on the other hand, we know very well that negative issues arise due to this fact. Koreans are very proud that these big companies are growing globally, but now they want them to look like global companies. There are a lot of competitors in Korea as well, and Koreans have a lot of options now. Samsung, Hyundai and LG are important companies in Korea, but they are just one of many Korean companies. Koreans are very smart. I hope you guys know Korean companies with more potential than the three big ones.
You present this as very dystopian but I've come to find out that most Koreans are actually glad to have the chaebol system and thank it for their nation's growth and success. I think that's a key difference between the East and West. Note Im not a fan of any of it either.
@@pax1850 So true. No one really like chaebols but just crushing them all dosen't make any profits. So rather than 'being too big to fall down', it's a matter of whether 'so do you want some extra benefit or not'. People easily overlook it, but in the past there's nothing in Korea.
There are two perspectives - defend Samsung from outside influence & takeover. Second, it is incredibly unfortunate that certain families get to keep the huge amount of wealth they beget having the best and the brightest South Koreans working for them.
I know the cyberpunk "corpo-states" were modeled after the skyrocketing Japanese economy of the 80s and the zaibatsu, but I have to say with 20% of the economy being a single corporation, South Korea is probably closest to a real-life "corpo-state" that is (Singapore and Cyprus coming a distant second and third, what with Cyprus Merchant Marine...)
It's true Adani and Ambani's no poach pact and excessive favor from our government is worrying. But the situation is very, very different. The unorganised and small business sector of India is far far larger than conglomerates, and we have only three companies at over 200 billion (which would still be a worrying 6% of our economy each): Adani - which has a worrying amount of control over the energy sector. But their leverage is fairly low as state-owned discoms are decentralised. Ambani- This one would definitely be very bad if they had complete control over Reliance. However, despite the Ambani family's considerable influence in the conglomerate, Reliance is owned by a number of hedge funds and MNCs with varying interest groups, and so it isn't cohesive enough to pose a threat of economic dependency (though there is still the threat of them monopolising industries, which the bjp may turn a blind eye to) TATA group - is a much more ethical firm that hasn't bribed the government or successfully monopolised any industry (yet, at least)
It is not true for India. govt is too powerful in India. in korea govt needs samsung. In India corporates needs govt. govt can give a huge blow to any corporate anytime.
Large corporations in Korea are mainly export-oriented. In underdeveloped countries, it is easy to make money through telecommunications, distribution, food, and real estate. However, making steel, automobiles, electronics, and semiconductors that compete in the global market is a difficult and challenging decision. Would Korea have developed as much as it does today without these challenging companies? I hope that Samsung's proportion will decrease in the future. This should not be done by reducing Samsung, but by increasing the number of top companies like Samsung.
Makes me curious what it would look like if Toyota and Walmart’s revenues for the gdp calculations were laid on top of South Korea’s gdp (raw numbers, no scaling)
You should check out Defunctland for less serious topics but still very in depth analysis of a certain American company that has ingrained itself in American culture.
The disconnect here is understanding Korean culture and work ethic. It is very competitive and different from how Westerners are. A company is one thing, but the culture is what makes it thrive. If you haven't tried to work and get a job in Korea, you wouldn't understand the hustle over there.
Modern day South Korea is designed to become almost exactly like pre-WWII Japan. Pre-WWII Japan was exactly like modern day South Korea, fewer than 10 family-run conglomerates (zaibatsu or chaebol) running 2/3 of a country's economy.
i REALLY love the "if you enjoyed this, check out ____" segment at the end! great video as usual, i had no idea samsung had such an aggressive hold on sk culture but it's terrifying. of course younger generations hate it. those who speak english might pick up our "fkn tired of corporations being in bed with the government" energy over here and add fuel. i hope they can untangle somehow without serious harm to the country, but it will inevitably happen sooner or later.
@@mokisan Japan still has it. It's called the Keiretsu now. It's partly the reason why Japan actually has one of the lowest ratios of FDI to GDP in the world, at just 4%. For context, the average for developed nations is around ten times that...
@@2Links absolutely and they're doing exactly that. i meant that i hope we encourage them with solidarity, as if they feel this isn't just something they're struggling with but really a global problem. if americans weren't so centric and egotistical maybe we would look to them for the same.
Nokia and Finland is the other relationship that comes to mind. In 2000, Nokia accounted for 4 per cent of Finnish GDP, 70 per cent of Helsinki's stock exchange market capital, 43 per cent of corporate R&D, 21 per cent of total exports, and 14 per cent of corporate tax revenues.
lol he might have pronounced the surname right but his other pronunciations, i'm sorry to say, were just absolutely atrocious. no hate though it was so well produced and researched, and he gained a sub from me lmao. but he butchered pretty much most of those names LOL
Our age has reached a conclusion in the wake of arriving at its zenith. The downturn and financial exchange crashes are influencing everything, not simply FTX and 401Ks. My retirement values portfolio, at $750K, is bleeding cash. I'm continually losing because of expansion. This world will disintegrate under its authoritarian rulers, similarly as. Assuming you are contemplating resigning yet are concerned that your annuity won't take care of the increasing expense of living, I am sorry. All over the planet, there are poor administrative, monetary, and energy approaches as well as awful international strategies.
We read news in the media that doom and gloom is coming and we just accept it, doom and gloom doesn’t always have to be coming, I’ve read numerous success stories of people that are pulling off tremendous gains of up to $250K within weeks in this crazy market and I just want to learn how to achieve such figures.
It all relies on your strategy and your willingness to stick with it, and the stock may fall further, but if you are a pro, making significant profits on this downtrend should not be a problem.
@patran567 That's impressive, my portfolio have been tanking all year, tried learning new strategies to gain in the current market but all of that flew right over head, please would you mind recommending the invt-adviser you're using?
@patran567 Much obliged, I could truly utilize the guidance, I've been losing a crap of late, I called JEAN and messaged her enumerating my objectives in the balance market.
The head of the Federal Reserve has more economic power than the president in the U.S. I sometimes misspell "Federal" by missing a d and an e when typing it. Might be a more accurate spelling in reality. Disclaimer: I have bought over 10 Samsung phones, 4 Samsung TVs, and 5 Samsung tablets. No Kias or Hyundais so far except for one Hyundai for a nephew about 15 year ago. He replaced it with a Genesis.
Samsung's products are diverse, so it's like hundres of small and medium-sized businesses combined, so even if one collapses, several are still going strong.
As someone who only knew the gist of all of this... thank you. My Korean friends, girlfriend or her family wouldn't have been able to explain this nearly as well, and I've always been curious about this. Thank you. This was extremely interesting.
@@xp7575 you should keep your rotten ideology to yourself,. SoKor wouldn't even be rich nor stand today without the presence of their Capitalist system.
Bribing the president to pardon him for the bribing charges is definitively a master move
no it's not. it's literally just doing the same thing you already did. that's the definition of not creative, not brilliant.
@@gwho it was a joke
@@gwho r/whoosh
Meta.
> Boss music plays
As a South Korean:
#1 very timely video. Tomorrow (Nov 17th) is college entrance exam day, which many will move on to prepare for the Samsung test mentioned. (GSAT) Samsung also has programs that recruits bright students from various universities.
#2 South Korea is dominated by conglomerates because it was always a war economy, and will be until Korea is unified. Samsung, Hyundai, Hanwha, LG etc all take a part in producing weapons, ammunition, military vehicles etc. Only when you have massive industrial plants and complexes like the ones conglomerates own can the entire economy be focused on mass production of whatever becomes necessary, and make the transition at the flick of a switch.
Having a small number of conglomerates was also a key component of Korea's state-led economic growth. Samsung investing in electronics wasn't its own doing but its allotted industry, ordered by the government. Even now long-term decisions in which future industries to invest in are often decided beforehand, so companies minimise wasting investment/R&D money competing for the same market.
#3 I do not think Samsung's dominance will continue for long. Its prestige and superiority is based on the international market, which is currently being competed by many firms. Samsung CEO also has a drug problem and may not be too focused on how to keep the company dominant globally long term. And given very small size of South Korea's domestic demand, losing intl market will make Samsung suffer.
Addendum: 한국인들이 계속 한국인 맞냐, 내가 아는거랑 다르다 하는데 어디서 틀린걸 말한건지 모르겠음
1) GSAT: 가장 많은 구직자들이 보는 시험이 되었다. 상반기 하반기 각각 9만~10만 명 정도 응시해, 대한민국에서 치러지는 시험 중 4번째로 큰 규모를 자랑한다.
2) 한국경제는 전쟁경제체제다: 당연함. 법률적 기반은 통합방위태세와 국민총동원령, 경제적 기반은 재벌체제임. 박정희 대통령은 1967년 '제2경제론'을 제시하며 제1경제와 제2경제를 공식석상에서 드러냄. 이는 물질적 측면의 제1경제와 다른 정신적 측면의 제2경제라는 명명으로 ‘총력전론’에 따른 사상전력화의 의미를 띄며, 언제든지 총력전에 들어갈 수 있도록 만듬. 재벌체제로 전쟁때 제일 필요한 철강, 조선, 전자 등 수출 주도형 중공업을 육성한게 그래서임. 지금도 한국경제는 동일한 사업으로 먹고 살고. 경제가 중소기업 주도가 아니라 대기업/재벌 주도로 가면 전쟁동원, 군수산업화, 전쟁경제정책 등 모든게 더 수월해짐.
3) 삼성의 영광은 오래 갈 거 같지 않다: 알아서 뉴스 보도록
Thanks for the info! I always liked Samsung products until I met their big appliances (fridges, laundry machines, etc) they just don't have the durability I expect.
A few questions I want to ask. Do you want both Koreas to unify? Won't china try to stop that if it happened?
Honestly, at least in the US, Samsung only really competes with Apple.
The other brands (especially phones), dont even come close. Motorola for example is touting a big screen, the ability to take 4k videos, and a 50mp camera (with a backup wide view and macro lense). The Samsungs either have had those features for years (like 4k videos), or simply do it better (better quality and larger screens.)
The absence of Chinese phones here means you either get a pretty basic smart phone made by Google, Motorola, etc, or you get a good phone by Samsung or Apple. There isn't really a phone with Samsung's quality that is sold at a lower price point.
TVs are a bit more competitive, but competition is still pretty slim, maybe 3 other companies.
Basically, there is no competition to challenge Samsung, and potential challengers seem years behind.
This is not true at all
Drug problem? What's he taking?
The Samsung Group is a larger group than you might think. Not only Samsung Electronics, but each of its subsidiaries, such as insurance, bio, battery, display, finance, medical, sports, and food, has great competitiveness within the industry. It's not just that one "Galaxy" accounts for 20% of South Korea's GDP.
They're also deeply in the military industrial complex. They were involved in American Self Propelled Guns ( essentially artillery on armored chassis) M109s that were license built in South Korea and the newer domestic K9 Thunder.
Right they're in many industries.
Beauty products as well bro. Blew my mind when I was in Seoul and saw a Samsung lipstick or something 😂
What was the purpose of this information? Mr. Bend over already went over it
70% of operating profit comes from semiconductor industry in Samsung. About half of world's memory chip supply comes from Samsung fab
Half correct and half wrong
Not every students want to go Samsung. It's about positions and quality. And almost every companies in S. Korea have their own specialties.
Beside Samsung(semiconductors), there are many decent companies in South Korea. They've got Hyundai (car, ship, construction), LG (batteries, display, home app.), SK(energy, battery, semiconductors), Kakao(IT), POSCO(steel), GS(refining), Lotte(chemical & distribution), Doosan(construction) etc.
South Korea has dominated various industrial fields such as semiconductors, home appliances, display, batteries, ships, cars, refining, constructions, even softpowers, weapons etc.
But everyone in Korea wants plastic surgery right?😂😂 basically your country is full of plastic men and women
😂
It's still the same song. Get a prestigious job at a large tech manufacturer/exporter.
sponsored by the south korean government 😂
Actually the republic of ‘license’ can be more accurate. Korean doctor earns twice or three times more than a samsung people
I am Korean and I am very amazed by how accurate this convoluted riddle was explained. Although I would say, it is bit exaggerated about all Korean people want to get into Samsung. It is a stable job with a good pay but that doesn’t mean it is the best.
Yeah! I also think it was a little bit exaggerated!
Tip- if an American is speaking it will be bigger, bolder, better! 😬🙄
@@fingerprint5511 true that's why kanye is the best rapper
Good one. It's not like "most koreans want to work for samsung so badly."
@@suriowl This reminds me of how upper middle class Americans [I'm from such a family] think of university.
The "Ivy League" - mostly Harvard / Yale / Princeton - has the prestige. But not all families care all *that* much for the Ivy League, nor do their children. So some [like me] will aim for others. But there are a limited number of others.
So, for a Korean equivalent: maybe the family thinks Samsung is overrated, but they'll still try to aim their child (and it may only be the one child) for Hyundai. Failing that - what. Japan? The US?
As a Korean, I cannot completely agree that Koreans students and their families are fixated to become a "Samsung Man". That is only half-correct.
After South Korea's IMF crisis in 1997, social interest has moved from being a company man to more stable jobs (i.e. medical doctors or dentists, lawyers). In the 1980s and 90s, being a loyal company man guaranteed a long career and stable life. Nowadays such social nonverbal agreements are non-existent, and more and more students are turning for other jobs.
The young generation study their high school years to be admitted to a prestigious university and get a respectable job. The South Korean job market is heavily focused on office jobs, and one of the routes just happen to be working for Samsung.
The Samsung test (GSAT) is popular not only because it's a Samsung recruit test, but also because it's a standardized private test. This makes job application processes much more clear-cut. That why the GSAT is so popular.
Also there isn't a strong "hierarchy" of companies, unlike your portrayal of Korean society. There are strong conglomerates in each industry, and Samsung just happens to be a major player in most of them. An automotive engineer would apply for Hyundai-Kia motors, and a software engineer would apply for Kakao Inc. It all depends on what field you are job searching.
I just wanted to point out some wrong interpretations on our society. Thanks
외국인들 입장에선 gsat에 매년 수십만명이 몰리는게 그렇게 보일수있지
@@user-cb8qc3gy8e Samsung electronics를 빼놓고 스타필드, CJ, Emart만 봐도... 한국사람들은 삼성 이병철회장 플랫폼 속에 살고 있는거 아닌가요... 레미안도 삼성계열 아파트이구. 삼성이 문제는 아니죠. 삼성과 같은 기업을 한국이 또 키워내는데 실패했다는 점이 문제겠죠. 삼성과 동급의 기업이 많고 많았다면 비율적으로 삼성도미넌스가 아니었을텐데.
@@Zinancy IMF 때 대우만 버텼어도 삼성만한 기업이 되었을 수도 있기에 너무 아쉽게 느껴지네요 ㅠㅠㅠ
^ the people's reaction to any NEA countries, runs on the same energy as this. thank you
양놈들 근들갑은 언제봐도 못말림ㅋㅋ
"Corporations can't run countries."
Sam is gonna freak out when he finds out about United Fruit Company
United didn't run CA, it got dictators in power that favored them.
I don't even see what the problem is
It doesn't match the narrator's expectation of how life should be, so therefore it's bad. Typical neo-liberal imperial attitude...
@@fitz3540 supporting companies like Samsung is more neoliberal
@@Bundpataka This guy doesn't even know what he's saying
@@fitz3540 I understand, each time I see something I don't politically align with I also call them neo libs
Have a look at the Wallenberg family in Sweden. They own roughtly 40% of swedish companies through majority shareholder power, as well as outright owning the swedish stockmarket (the servers housing the stockmarket). They also hold about 50% of swedish GDP in wealth. They should make for an interesting video
That's crazy
As a Swedish person I'm ashamed to say that this is news to me. Guess I got my homework cut out for me tonight!
berg?
their motto is apparently “to be, not to be seen”. possibly the sketchiest thing you can say as someone who’s got a practical monopoly
Ew
In some ways, getting employed by Samsung or any family-run multinational companies in South Korea is almost like becoming a worker of a stable public service job in some countries: job security and pensions are guaranteed as well parents will be gleefully happy & grateful knowing that their grown-up children are working in one of the chaebol companies that promises lofty benefits.
not just regular public service jobs in other country cuz its 6 figure salary if you get employed in samsung
@@kalakalaiand3343 That's for the upper rank white-collar job positions. I wonder if R&D and production line workers get hefty bonuses and employment benefits as well
You mean annoying
Go to sleep
@Zaydan Naufal Also known as government-linked companies (GLC) in some countries. Chaebols on the other hand are fully private companies, but they have stable and solid connections to the SKorean govt ever since the early years of South Korean independence thanks to generous contracts to supply much needed machineries, vehicles, chemical products et cetera.
As a Korean, buying Korean domestic products is not just because of the brand royalty. A/S is very fast. Because their market domination is large and there are so many branches, so when my LG laptop, Samsung phone, or Hyundai car has a problem, I can fix it on the same day by visiting the brand shops at very low cost. I also used an HP laptop, and it took one month to repair. Apple is one of the few exceptions because many people use them to get the AS fast. and people like to buy foreign luxury bags because those things do not have repairing problems, usually. In conclusion, when people consider their budget, quality and A/S period, they usually conclude to buy the Korean product, even though foreign products seems to be better
Whenever I buy a Korean product I always seem to experience many issues very early on in their lifespan compared to products from other countries. Why is that so?
@@pixels_per_inch confirmation bias
@@g00gleh00 My samsung phone spoiled within 2 years, can't even turn on anymore. No such problem in all other brands, not even chinese brands.
Excuse my ignorance, but what's "A/S"?
@@NickACrowley Koreans call maintenance/repair service simply as "A/S"(After service). It's one of localized english words in Korea.
Interesting topic. Not long ago I visited South Korea and I couldn’t help to notice how fast things are being built and how modern the country is. When I did a little research I was stunned when I found out how much Samsung has invested in the country.
Like seriously South Korea’s wealth defies all logic
@@bababababababa6124 agree. I haven’t watched the video yet (it’s saved for later) everywhere I looked there were buildings/facilities etc going up. Even near the location, I was staying in there was a building going up.
@@cv5369 if only my country was like that 🇳🇬😢 instead it sucks
@@bababababababa6124 without getting too political, South Korea gets a lot of military $$ from the United States.
@@cv5369 well its an important ally close to China, not as much as Taiwan, but you always want that :D
Me watching a Samsung documentary on a Samsung tablet.
lmaooooooo you just made realize I'm doing the same
LG made a new tablet, so switch it if you want
@urdailygamr9229 are you korean
Me on my a23 5g
Exactly watching on a samsung M31 phone 😂😂
Today's fact: The University of Minnesota is older than Minnesota the state itself.
Clicked on a Wendover video and already got Topdeck'd with information faster than the video
Go Gophers!
Same with the University of Georgia and The state of Georgia
Did the native Americans had universities?
🤷🏾♂️🤷🏾♂️
This was one of the most interesting and gripping episodes you've ever made. The logistics of corruption tempered by pragmatism. I was glued to the screen.
Praying Korea is liberated from the corporations running their capitalist system of slavery 🙏 🙏
Is it corruption if it leads to the thriving of the state, economy & populace? SK is considered a miracle lol
@@KevinJohnson-cv2no Do you believe that Samsung having a vice-grip on the people of SK is a net benefit? SK citizens are educated, industrially minded and in a position to do something themselves. The US has had megamonopolies like Samsung does, the famous one being the Rothschild's oil empire. I can't imagine Samsung being split up is a bad thing in the long run.
@@GSNRecords I'm just saying it's a bit of stretch to call it corruption when it is literally the primary driver of national growth. If Samsung wasn't a corporation I doubt people would be so quick to assume their moral high-ground.
In a way, both north and south Korea are ruled mostly by 1 family.
Samsung takes "too big to fail" to a whole new level
You know how powerful Samsung is? LG announced last year they would stop making smartphones because the cost of production hit a breaking point for them. Samsung now owns a monopoly on the phone industry in Korea. Monopolies are so bad that when Kia hit some hard times, Hyundai bought them out. That's right. Hyundai continued the Kia name, but they own the Korean car industry too.
Too big to fall is a term for failing entities which samsung is far from. On the contrary samsung group's corp tax makes up 2 digit percentages the all national corp tax. Its natural that the person who provides has a big say/influence over the family imo.
@@koonsickgreen6272 Pride comes before a fall.
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
Nokia was big too.
Don't Forget Hyundai is also from South Korea and they made so many things apart from just Vehicles
Geographically speaking, all four "East Asian Tiger" economies should be poor. Yet Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan are considered "miracle economies."
Yes, but at what cost?
@@Nelsonwmj They didn’t exactly have the time to industrialize over 2 centuries like west Europe or 1 century for America, so they have a very old population and low birth rates. The factor which allowed them to industrialize quickly such as working a lot consequently leads to depression and little time for other pursuits.
@@ac1455 They're like a company that keeps an old practice just because it's what brought them success in the past, but never bothers to examine if it's still efficient to keep doing that. Their workaholism is so deeply ingrained in their culture that I doubt it's even removable anymore.
And now that China is high on that Tiger Juice after that first Hong Kong hit, they are definitely targeting the other 3.
Wealth leads to military power, and they know it. And they intend to conquer every penny of it along the pacific rim. Starting with shipping.
The moment they feel wealthy and untouchable enough to move on Taiwan, they will have their attack dog NoKo move on SoKo. Which they will then depose and take for themselves. Then it's on to Singapore. From there, no stopping them all the way from India to Australia & Japan.
Miracle aka super corrupt and shady
Samsung is legit too big to fail, not "the country would be in deep recession if it fail" more like "the country as we know it WILL collapse without it"
Time to break up samsung into multiple different companies.
No such thing as "too big to fail".
@@DavidJohnson-dp4vv It already has and it is still big.
That's why it should be nationalized!
@@PickyPaige The profit incentive is absent when the state takes control of an industry, which means that there may be a loss of efficiency, and a rise in inefficiency. This means that management might be inefficient in comparison with similar firms in the private sector. Samsung will slowly lose quality and get replaced with Apple or Huawei
Chaebol influence in South Korea really does run deep, especially in the economic and political aspects. From what I have researched, 50% of South Korean Gross Domestic Product (GDP) consisted of the country's Top 5 largest chaebol conglomerates (Samsung, LG, Hyundai, SK Group, and Lotte).
Granted, thanks to policies by the Rhee, Park, and Chun presidencies/dictatorships, these companies receive government support under conditions of export requirements, in turn making the Korean economy of today. The influences chaebols have can dictate certain government policies to favour company interests.
Edit: Minor mistakes on my part, apologies. I revisited my sources once more, it's not GDP that represents that "50%", rather it's half of South Korea's stock market value. Chaebols represent half of it.
Praying Korea is liberated from the corporations running their capitalist system of slavery 🙏 🙏
Why do people choose to work for chaebol companies? Given that it’s not 100% of the economy?
@@xp7575 corporatist* capitalism is too broad a term to apply here. A government enforced monopoly is a very specific form of capitalism.
@@shibasurfing they make more money, simple as that. A lot of them have close ties to government making it easier for them to deal with any regulations or tax laws which gives them a competitive advantage in terms of pay over smaller enterprises. Smaller businesses fill in the gaps that are not served by the bigger corps.
@@Plainsburner Also the asian practice of saving face and pride, if anything those are even more important to your average salaryman than the salary
My living grandmother (born in 1934) clearly remembers not only the days long before samsung was even heard of, but also the days before Korea was divided into North and South when it was ruled by Japan.
Seeing a young child today, it's mind boggling to think how much things will change over their lifetime.
I was really surprised when I found out the sheer size and influence the Samsung company had. It's almost enough to classify them as a nation in enough of itself.
It's kinda mindblowing that still Apple is bigger than Samsung in terms of money.
@@Je_QzcY3mN0Maybe in revenue but not influence. Samsung is way bigger than Apple.
@@Je_QzcY3mN0 Samsung with all its subsidiaries combined is worth more than Apple. Samsung the main phone branch is nowhere near Apple, but every company that has a little Samsung in their brand added together beat Apple.
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
@@fislen-e1dshinsegae, cheiljedang(cj), hansol are originated from Samsung
As a Korean I feel it's not a healthy structure in which a single company has so much effect on country. There are other large corporations but Samsung definitely takes large part in daily life. I live in an apartnemnt constructed by Samsung. Majority of appliances at my home are Samsung, my insurance is Samsung, I graduated University whose foundation is Samsung owned, I do my shopping on online mall owned by Samsung. If Samsung somehow collapsed it would shake the foundation of my daily life
Have you ever heard of the phrase too big to fail😅. The korean govt. No the IMF bank wiuld be first in line to shore thrm up. So rest easy. You hv hedged your bets wisely in this case
@@rosean374Too big to fail is just an illusion.
@@RL.Baba09 you must be too young to remember 2008 financial crisis. Too big to fail is definitely real even in a BIG economy such as the US. The US government used taxpayers' money to bail out certain banks which were on the brink of collapse because their failure would have probably kickstarted another great depression. In the case of South Korea, how far do you think the Korean government would go to protect Samsung, which controls over 20% of the GDP?
@@corvusglaive5769 Bankrupt itself to save it.
It sucks that a corporation has that much power.
I would say it’s borderline dystopian, but Samsung has done a good job of controlling (or hiding) its desire to be extremely greedy.
Sounds like a life from black mirror
My university professor claimed that the investigation that led to former S Korea's president Park's impeachment was triggered when a university student questioned how Park's friend Choi's daughter was able to get an 'A' for a university module despite skipping some lectures
김연아도 마찬가지😅
다른 운동선수들도 수업없이 메달과 감상문으로 졸업함.
미국 법원처럼, 한국법원도 썩었음. 이상하게 삼성욕하는 정치인의 자녀들은 다들 미국 국적이더라? 미국은 유대교적 교리로 운영되어서, 타민족에 대한 배려가 없음.
Well your prof must be a monky because that’s not what happened nor can a simple bribery for a daughter of a close friend of the president lead to an investigation that big lol
@@jbunker7526Really?? I didn't know that.
Lies again? Shadow Kick Silat Keris
I tried to be a samsung man too as a Korean, went and graduated from prestigious university in Korea, acquiring profession-related certificates and license and I've failed. So I tried out bit-o-lesser conglomerate and I just can't get used to this stiff and strict office hierarchy. so I quitted my job after around a year and half. Now I am an english teacher in Private Korean English Institute (aka Academy or Hak-won) and my university friends stopped calling me ever since; probably because I am a failure haha.
Don't be afraid to look for opportunities outside your country.
1. you are not a failure. 2. your country kinda is though. one single company shouldnt have this kind of power. why? cause when it fails the entire country fails. thats not sustainable, eventually it WILL fail. 3. everyone needs to go their path as long as you PERSONALLY (not from the outside but you yourself) are happy with what you do its fine. in a way you have a higher chance of going out unscathed, because if samsung fails, then all these employees will be fucked.
If you’re happy with what you do, I hope u don’t consider yourself a failure because of what others think
I'm an American currently living in South Korea. It is insane how much brand loyalty there is here. Literally every phone in the country is a Samsung (I've never seen so many foldables in my life). Every single car on the road is a Kia or Hyundai. Every appliance is an LG or Daewoo. And Lotte and Kakao are everywhere too. I've lived all over the world and never seen a country so loyal to its own brands. It's actually kind of admirable.
@@Jason-tx2xc You taught me something I didn’t know before. Thanks.
Just think as Koreans who didn't had any choices at that time. Korean history is deeper than you think. Thanks my friend.
Also they seem to act to products much more fanatical like they own a share of the company's stock when 50 percent of Korea's wealth are owned by less than 0.001%
@@Jason-tx2xc Not just tariffs. The products produced by domestic suppliers for domestic markets is extremely consistent and reliable to meet the cultural trends and demands that are exclusive to a very homogenous ethnic/cultural group. Even if tariffs were gone tomorrow, Koreans will still favor domestic products for most of their needs.
@@andrewofaiurthey should be forced to open up their markets really. Well, not forced they are a sovereign nation but reciprocal tariffs should be implemented. They are too rich for charity.
1:16 Imagine being told "hey, you know your fish & noodle store? Take good care of it, it's gonna be driving Korea's entire fucking economy in about 70 years"
100th like
100th like
Corporations this large make it easy to imagine what it was like to live in feudal times.
Fuedel times just modernised. It's still there.
That's the entire problem with Capitalism. "Enterprise over Nation." We used to call that Treason. It's not pragmatic. It's PR nonsense to justify the continuation of the dynasty. No one's leadership is absolute. No one is irreplaceable. Anyone of decent intelligence can run a company. Break up monopolies! The U.S. did it decades ago, and we were fine. (17:53)
@Zaydan Naufal which is not bad, I'm homeless in the USA yet I'm fat as heck and everyone is giving me free burgers.. Nothing that charitable exist in 3rd world nations, but hey I'm a dumb hobo what do I know?
@@whatayaDO543 a parasite is sill a parasite.
@@whatayaDO543 you go to India and you could eat for free every single day at Sikh Temples. And you don’t sound like a homeless person tbh
I loved that you gave suggestions at the end, thats a really nice touch.
Its interesting how they hold so much power over politics in South Korea and yet they haven’t lobbied to have the inheritance tax removed or significantly decreased. I doubt most South Koreans would object.
Perhaps it's to their benefit. If they can avoid that tax only because of their size and influence over South Korea, they'll hold an advantage over companies without the same benefits.
@@anthonycastellano6523 thats very clever and that's what I thought too
I think most would as I am sure most object to being run by Samsung
@@Kefkaownsall the thing is, that inheritance tax applies to everyone, I doubt working class people like having 50% of their shit taken away every generation and I doubt they’d be in favor of that just because of some petty resentment toward Samsung.
@@anthonycastellano6523 interesting, didn’t think of it that way but I guess that could be a reason.
Although Samsung's test is very popular, the clip you're running through the paragraph is actually the Korean SAT which is worthy of another video.
Yes. He is confused with SAT and GSAT
“Corporations can’t run countries.”
Samsung: Continues to run country.
The EIC also had a good go at it, though they managed to fuck it all up royally eventually, over the stupidest of things.
VOC: **amateur**
Defense contractors clearly run the US, much worse.
He's saying they can't run countries effectively in a way that prioritizes the well-being of its citizens. When push comes to shove, Samsung would throw every South Korean into a volcano if it would double their market cap.
You know for a nation to economically grow the money should come from outside... Samsung makes it.
Apple makes it for US
Daimler Inc makes for Germany.
etc etc...
It's nothing wrong if they're keeping their countries "running".
My nephew had his phd scholarship at UCLA, On his last semester, Apple, Samsung, Toyota were lining up to to hire him. He ultimately chose Samsung cause of its start pay of $168K start salary plus benefits. All of this at only 25. He now lives in Korea, married an Australian cutie with 2 kids...Samsung will take care of you if you treat it like family.
Well, good for him. Hope he's enjoying it. But yeah, I heard apple treats their employees like trash. Definitely made a good choice. Actually thinking of getting a Samsung soon.
I recently watched the Vice documentary about the cancer victims at the Samsung Electronic factory and how Samsung, the government, the Ministry of Labour and the police all worked together for 11 years to take the victims to court and try deny what they did. Of course there was very little payment compared to hospital costs, court costs and labour fees paid (11m split to dozens of families) with no one sepping down or any change being made to stop corruption like that happening again.
Western governments and courts also collude with employers to deny employee rights..
@@petesmitt duh
@@petesmitt Yep. This video is about Korea if you haddn't noticed. Maybe Wendover can make a video about Trade Unions around the world and their historical impact and decreasing power because of government policies in the next video.
@@CM_CM_ I don't understand comments like @pete smitt, they go with tu quoque everytime a criticism comes up. Its basically a five yr old going "but he gets to do it!!"
@@lamia197 Whataboutism is always very popular online - maybe they're new to learning all countries have levels of corruption and wanted to share who know haha
It really is a brutal moment when you realize that you have to keep something/someone even if they're bad or problematic because you need them.
@@dogshiin maybe, but even then that's a massive risk the SK government has to take
This is a fact of the majority of relationships.
As my American friend put it: "So....kinda sorta cyberpunk 2077 without the cool shit?"
yeah.....pretty much going that way it seems.
@@lamia197 Yet here in America I'm still waiting for public transport to be improved. Every other developed country has fancy high speed rails meanwhile our best system is Amtrak... We don't got ANY of the cool shits. 😔
There's nothing inherently bad about what they did, if anything they're forced to do so by the system.
Suppose the politician or the chaebol refused to do the criminal action but then plunge the country into economic down spiral and drag the rest of the world into economic down turn, causing many economic and social unrest, unemployment, increase in criminals, deaths etc
Would they be hailed as heroes because they refused bribery? Or would the world beg them to do it if we could go back before that alternate history?
Real Life Lore, Polymatter and Wendover Productions have a >20% influence on the gross domestic production of UA-cam's world politics explanation videos, and their coalition should really be kept in check to prevent excessive dependence /s
I'd also throw Economics Explained into that group, given how thorough his videos are.
touche
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
You forgot Oversimplified !
Polymatter is kinda meh 🫤 low key conservative
South Korea's long term problem is that their fertility rate is unsustainable and Samsung or other major corporations don't seem to have done anything to promote settled family life, if anything doing the opposite and working people beyond the ability to devote any time to children. In the long term this will either cause a productivity crisis, a tense political situation due to mass immigration, or force leaders to engineer a sort of agreement or even union with North Korea in order to make use of their underutilised workforce.
The whole thing is predicated on their ability to predict their own deaths. They'll always be one heart attack/plane crash/stepped on a lego at 3am/rock in their shoe/wet sock/OD away from dissolution.
If your rich and well connected enough, your untimely death can be covered up for months ala Weekend and Bernie's as long as it's not something like a high-profile plane crash. In those months the family can quickly prepare and reevaluate their positions to maintain control.
His father is rumored to have died many years ago, but not official declared so. So yes, they can 'predict' their own deaths, in the sense that they can control when they're official considered dead and hence liable for paying for the inheritance tax.
@@cat-le1hf I dunno. How about you go test that?
@@ArawnOfAnnwn good idea. Let's get Chow Yun Fat to film it
@@cat-le1hf apparently
holy shit, samsung to south korea is literally cyberpunk real life
Arasaka < Samsung
@@pjz7088 I'm sorry but Arasaka still has to take the spot on this one, they literally have a flying aircraft carrier, and an army that can rival the united states government, god knows what kind of shady tech they possess. but yeah I'm really glad that they're not real 😅
but we using apple smartphone
@@김민혁-v8q but memory chip and display of Iphone is from samsung electronics
Yes this fucking county is real dystopia
As an Indiana native, I appreciate this is the most famous our state will become for the next decade. Thank you
😂😂😂
Please, we have corn. We don’t need to be famous.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Indiana famous for Todd Young lol
Bruh your state is quite popular because of Stranger things... HAWKINS, INDIANA.
Those young people need to remember not to bite the hand that feeds them. As you said, Samsung doesn't need South Korea, South Korea needs Samsung. Those young people haven't thought about what life in South Korea without Samsung would be like.
I doubt they want to remove samsung entirely they just dont want it to be corrupt which i believe is a fair want
worship the almighty samsung , suure... lol
@@titanicisshit1647 tell you what: when you create a company as successful as theirs, then you get an opinion. Until then, enjoy your useless meaningless life.
Samsung isn't just an electronics giant as many outside of South Korea view it.
It's in insurance, heavy engineering, real estate, banking and finance, recreation, healthcare, precision equipment, military technology, and so much more.
That's how influential a chaebol (conglomerate) gets in both societal, economical, and political spheres in the country, and why South Korea is more or less an oligarchy (don't forget LG, Hyundai, SK, and Lotte) based on how much economic leverage these 5 companies alone have over the entire nation.
I mean every "Democracy" are multiple one of these :
-Oligarchy
-Electocracy (A form of representative democracy where citizens are able to vote for their government but cannot participate directly in governmental decision making. The government has almost absolute power. Only "democratic" country that wasn't an Electocracy was Switzerland Pre-Covid)
-Electoral Autocracy (A hybrid regime, in which democratic institutions are imitative and adhere to authoritarian methods. In these regimes, regular elections are held, but they fail to reach democratic standards of freedom and fairness.)
-Aristocraty (A system of governance where political power is in the hands of a small class of privileged individuals who claim a higher birth than the rest of society.)
-Kraterocracy (Rule by the strong; a system of governance where those who are strong enough to seize power through physical force, social maneuvering or political cunning.)
-Netocracy (Rule by social connections . A portmanteau of Internet and aristocracy, netocracy refers to a perceived global upper-class that bases its power on a technological advantage and networking skills)
-Particracy (Rule by a dominant political party (or parties).)
-Plutocracy (Rule by the wealthy; a system wherein governance is indebted to, dependent upon or heavily influenced by the desires of the rich. Plutocratic influence can alter any form of government. For instance, in a republic, if a significant number of elected representative positions are dependent upon financial support from wealthy sources, it is a plutocratic republic.)
-Corporatocraty (Rule by corporations; a system of governance where an economic and political system is controlled by corporations or corporate interests.)
-Kakistocracy (Rule by the worst; a system of government where the least-qualified citizens govern or dictate policies.)
-Kleptocracy (Rule by thieves; a system of governance where its officials and the ruling class in general pursue personal wealth and political power at the expense of the wider population. In strict terms kleptocracy is not a form of government but a characteristic of a government engaged in such behavior.)
-Nepotocracy (Rule by nephews; favouritism granted to relatives regardless of merit; a system of governance in which importance is given to the relatives of those already in power, like a nephew (where the word comes from). In such governments even if the relatives aren't qualified they are given positions of authority just because they know someone who already has authority.
-Bureaucracy (Rule by a system of governance with many bureaus, administrators, and petty officials.)
So for example France (My country) is an Oligarchy ,Electocracy ,Electoral Autocracy ,Aristocraty (Not by Higher birth but by a certain "Education") ,Kraterocracy ,Netocracy ,Plutocracy ,Kakistocracy ,Kleptocracy ,Nepotocracy and Bureaucracy .
South Korea would be a Corporatocraty
Edit :Only country that you could call real democracy in the last 2000 years are Swizertland (Pre-Covid) and San Marino ,maybe Liechenstein too ,but that's all .
All the more reason for companies founded by people of Korean descent to set up headquarters in South Korea and significantly lessen the Big Five's economic strangehold (so to speak).
@@plumebrise4801 There is no such things as real democracy. Because most people are dumb. A full democracy can only lead to chaos. You need to give power into the hand of the smart one to keep thing in order
@@plumebrise4801 What happened to switzerland?
@@ayoCC the Habsburgs originated in Switzerland.
Actually, Lee Kun-Hee's son made 'a mistake' in one of speeches, calling his father 'my late father'. It was several years before Lee Kun-Hee's actual official funeral. Yes, Samsung requires necromancy to keep its house of cards.
Not just Samsung all mega Korean coproations are run by the founder's familes. It's called Jaebol !!
Are you saying his father was already dead but they kept that from the public?
@@Tank175 yes
@@Tank175 he probably died a long time ago but we just never knew.
@@Tank175 this is just another controversial story without any concrete evidence
16:48 "Lee Kun-hee was later revealed to have used bribery to convince the president to pardon him for his bribery charges" shocked pikachu face
yeah totally never would've seen that coming eh. sucks that with such high stakes, corruption is practically necessitated. I despise corruption and would love to see a better Korea, but the government simply doesn't have the capability to at this point, and hasn't for a long time.
*"he can't keep getting away with it"*
As an ex-Sr. VP at Samsung, their success is largely tied to their work ethic. I watched in amazement how aggressive they were in innovation. They have no patience for those who don't produce.
Nah, it was mostly good cheap stuff they brought to markets, especially when china was not that much into manufacturing.
Those crates of microphones/transmitters for interviews are pretty neat.
yeah what the deal with them?
@@tezz_27_ Perhaps just an arrangement to make sure reporters won't crowd up so much? "Give us your mics and we'll hold them for ya"?
@@JoonasD6 exactly.
South Korea's government directed industries are a pretty interesting case study. I was very impressed by their planned initiatives to evolve into a media powerhouse. SK is sort of a capitalist oligarchy with central planning and an insane focus on education.
South Korea is evidence that a monarchy is the superior form of the government, Samsung has been past down from the guy who founded it to his son and so on even today the Lee family controls it.
This is also interesting. With the extreme focus on education, it can help leave them flexible in case of failures and downsizing. If you have a population of engineers, programmers, lawyers, etc; they can flex and build an equally effective growth area without a brain drain that can be invested in by remaining companies and the government. Like many other first world companies, valuing education and investing in it literally provides resilience for your country. To counterpoint that, the Soviet’s had quite decent education but very little option for growth or advancement, but they were spread out and their culture and melting pot of many ethnicities was quite different. I’m just pondering but I’m sure many academic papers have been written about these concepts. Either way, end of the day, as long as you don’t live in a hopeless backwards and outwardly oppressive society, education is an extreme key to success.
It's corporatism without the fascism part
All i can conclude is they really did it for their small nation.
Unlike us Indians where we have sheitload of population and No QUALITY. Nor EQUALITY.
I am always fascinated by how much the far East Asians are way ahead in level of thinking, Sincerity, Education & technology.
I mean the Japanese could've easily kept bragging and crying about Murican nuclear bombing, but they Fking built thier nation....
_That's just amazing for me personally_
@@br0k3nman 'Some Lessons from the East Asian Miracle' by J.E. Stiglitz (1996) provides a decent overall summary, while being relatively short, if you want to a starting place to the sub-genre of developmental economics that's trying to understand (and replicate) the success of the Asian Tigers.
It's crazy that I've known about all the events you mentioned for years, but never has any article actually explained how all these pieces fit together, how Samsung was behind the whole thing.
The news is like the worst place to find out what's actually going on. It's great at telling you the latest thing to happen but god help you if you haven't been reading every update every day from the start.
Samsung is just a part of korea economy. Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
As a Korean, It contains biased perspective in samsung. We consider it as one of companies in Korea and of course We don't underestimate Samsung. But What I want to say is Korean's life goal is not entering Samsung. It is just one of it. Except that I think this video is quite good
Korea wil eventually fall into Chinese influence
@@Tacticalerth China will be ruined. China is a thief
Samsungs antics with the government reminds me of how the kings of old would give their own governments the run around to put through whatever measures they wanted to put in
Every country to some extent has to deal with it. Money is power and they do like to talk bullshit with it.
Samsung isn't the only large company in S.K. Briberu is a thing of the past. Gaving a horse as a goft and donating to the sports foundation is a birde?
@@fislen-e1d what do you think it is and why ? not convinced anyone yet with previous reply.
Money talks. Every country has the same issues with extremely rich corporations or private individuals having too much political sway.
Chaebol is the romanization of 재벌 which means "wealth clan". This word can be written in the same characters as the Japanese zaibatsu (meaning financial clique), as both these words have Chinese roots. The Japanese zaibatsu (or keiretsu nowadays) were powerful monopolistic conglomerates of pre-war Japan, with four big ones. Sumitomo, Mitsui, Yasuda, and the most famous being Mitsubishi. They were broken up by the GHQ (General Headquarters; another name for the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers during the American occupation) but later on loosely reconstituted.
didnt know Mitsubishi were that old
Thank Kim. Also, can you not shoot missiles into the Sea of Japan? thanks bud
재벌(Jebul) in tradional Korean is 가면이(Gamani) and both mean the weathy person
@@blackniga420 East sea mind you!
@@jesskim5003 You wish, Kim! 😂
"Corporations can't run Countries" to which the United Fruit Company says: "Hold my banana"
Hanwha is the new kid on the block. They're pretty old but recently have made huge gains in the market and closed in on the likes of LG and Samsung. They're not as close as Samsung's sister companies but their weapons production group dominates the market. They've also purchased Samsung's weapons and systems arm in the early 2010s. I think we'll see many scandals or controversies surrounding their operations for years to come. They basically have a chokehold on the south Korean arms market and even surpasses the revenue of Raytheon and Lockheed Martin etc. in some markets.
Since this was a Wendover Productions video I was surprised that there was no mention of the fact that the Samsung group also once made planes (Samsung Aerospace), and built airports (Samsung C & T Corp.) 😅
Didn’t they do neo colonialism not literally running the countries?
Hi Avery.
See also the British East India Company
Korea will develop further if Samsung runs the country ,Politics is worse than Samsung's system
@@gothicgolem2947 That is the same thing to me.
Samsung is a huge brand in Cameroon. We have been using their products for more than 20 years❤
What I felt while living in Korea
To the Korean people, Samsung has a strong image as a national team that represents Korea and earns foreign currency in the world market rather than dominating Korea.
Depends on who you interacted with in Korea. Plenty Koreans hate the Lee family's guts. Especially given that Samsung has a pretty murdrous history in opposition to labor unions, which the country effectively pardoned (similar to the murder of civil rights leaders by the FBI). The image of Samsung as the 'national team' is one of the main litmus tests for whether you are left-/right-leaning (often correlated to whether or not you were born rich) in Korea. I don't know who you interacted with, but its' likely they were upper class, right-leaning individuals.
@황성연 I agree. I think 70% of Koreans are friendly and 20% are hostile.
@@cea6770 I respect your opinion.
It is natural that the impression of a particular object differs from person to person.
However, I have not seen a single Korean cheering at the news that Samsung Electronics is losing to TSMC or Apple.
Seems they got their own ARMY too...
@@cea6770 That's a great perspective there ..
Renewed my subscription to Nebula for a second year, this year.
Your documentary Extremities has been a joy to watch. Reminds me of the Discovery I grew up with. Great job!
Hey, this is the rare kind of Wendover video that is probably going to send me down a research rabbit hole as I absolutely need to know more :D
Vice has a good video on the state of South Korea's corporate overlords
Really good choice of using PolyMatter as the first creator in the Nebula ad, lol, if this was twice the length and went into even more detail this video could've been one of his :P
Seriously, given the title and subject I did a double take at it being on Wendover.
Praying Korea is liberated from the corporations running their capitalist system of slavery 🙏 🙏
Asianometry has a few videos on South Korea.
Japan is similar, albeit they're more subtle about it. Asianometry has some good videos on them too.
I taught English in Korea for many years. Samsung always paid well, had good facilities, and was fair.
Nice youtube account name !
This video made me realise that I should take more note of current affairs. This was so interesting and I was never aware of it.
Samsung isn't the only large company in S.K. Hundai, SK, HANHWA, POSCO, HYOSUNG etc these are all big copamies in S.K.
Don't forget LG, Naver, Kakao etc.
There's KIA too!
One thing Samsung does to indirectly hold Koreans hostage, and to ensure they do their dirty deeds unimpeded is that almost every single young lawyer in Korea will at one point in their careers act as an attorney for a Samsung company in a legal procedure. So that if a private citizen would ever want to sue Samsung for whatever reason, finding a lawyer that would be able to sue Samsung is very hard, as most often there will be a conflict of interest.
I live in Korea and we once tried suing Samsung Insurance over services not rendered, and our lawyer told us exactly that. Only the most bleeding heart left leaning Korean lawyers, of which there are very few, will ever represent you against Samsung.
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
@@fislen-e1d I know, I live in South Korea.
@@fislen-e1dbut Samsung is the biggest, by a good margin.
It’s a smart and legal move.
Like all conglomerates and big tech companies or any billion business in the world , they didn’t make to the top without using some shady tactics to avoid litigations and taxes.
You may not like , it may be seems unethical , but at the end of the day it’s legal and smart 🤷🏾♂️.
You are wrong on so many levels, samsung has lost several trials and have among the most friendly corporate policies in all of Korea.
Big ups to you guys at wendover once again. Such an interesting story I had no idea about prior to seeing this video. Thank you for the content!
Google and Apple dominate the US...
They want to dominate Korea, but they can't, so they're attacking Samsung. 😂😂
South Korea is an example of State Capitalism, when a corporation is too big that you can no longer distinguish it from the state it's depending on.
Yeah that's pretty much spot on, you hit the nail on the head
and that state capitalism mentality really took off in the 1960s when South Korea slipped into a dictatorship under Pak Chung Hee, the economy of South Korea quadrupled and rose exponentially under his administration but of course at great cost of human, privacy, and labor rights during his era
It got so bad that he ended up being assassinated by the CIA
_(Korea called it's own domestic intelligence agency the CIA as well during that time period, they've since renamed to the National Intelligence Service)_
its a good system it made everyone so much richer
well, it's not. you see, even the "greatest" chairman of Samsung Group can also go locked in prison if they made some faulty behavior against the law. Recently, it happened. and can be done.
@@atomanni-k5m And now South Koreans are realizing that the wealth benefits are going down after stagnating
@@logoyangban Did you watch the video? They literally pardoned him because "samsung is essential to korea" lol
1:06 i am afraid it is quite misleading to say that Korea’s drastic economic growth owes much to a single company samsung. “miracle of the han river” mentioned in the video is mostly about the country’s development in 70-80s. back then samsung was obviously one of the largest major companies but was not as dominant as today, nor was it the top either. until mid 90s hyundai was the largest but for political reasons + semiconductor sales samsung began to outperform hyundai in late 90s and became more dominant afterwards esp. from 2010s with smartphone galaxy business making good results globally. its that different.
Actually, Korean National Pension Service is the largest shareholder in most of popular Korean companies, just as Samsung group subsidiaries. Like Samsung, LG, Hyundai, and SK are facing same situations against Korean government. That's why Korean government has quite a lot of power to shake over 'chaebol' groups.
Praying Korea is liberated from the corporations running their capitalist system of slavery 🙏 🙏
So it's a socialist economy
@@xp7575 by nationalising their companies? This would make South Korea closer to China.
@@ThinkingMarion More of a war economy, since South Korea is still facing North Korea. And most of the men have gone through military service, and still kept as reserve forces. Very few outsiders know that Samsung and Hyundai also manufacture tanks, warships, fighter jets and missiles. One of the biggest conglomerates in Korea is Hanhwa, and it's name is litterally "Korean Gunpowder" in Korean. They own one of the tallest building in Seoul and have a baseball team. Crazy stuff
Looks like the other way around. From this story looks like Chaebol has power over government. Lee made the government short itself by agree to merger hence devalue its holding in C&T. Will not invest in Korea ever, no rule and law, like China.
There should be more credit given to the Japanese who made it possible for Samsung to even be able to make semiconductors and high tech electronics. Most of the technology is from Japan, and still comes from Japan. With US embargo on Japanese semiconductors, Japanese moved investment into Korea and Taiwan. The growth of Samsung and Korea is thanks to Japan and some US handouts.
일본 고맙습니다.
@@hawkeye5187👍
"As a 'Samsung man,' I am aware that the fundamental memory technology was originally brought from Japan. The person who laid the foundation for Samsung Electronics, Jin Daeje, once said that Koreans are not capable of creating something from scratch.
However, Japan's semiconductor technology collapsed due to their own significant issues; they had no efficiency at all and ultimately couldn't keep up with Samsung's efficiency. Efficiency itself is a form of technology. From this perspective, Japan's semiconductor manufacturing capabilities failed because they lagged behind in technology.
And since Japan completely lacks this kind of technology, I deny the claim that 'most of it is Japanese technology.'
For example, Elpida focused on 'craftsmanship' and neglected the concept of memory as a commodity. They obsessively implemented excessive inspection processes, choosing a cell process focused on performance over production efficiency, resulting in poor productivity.
Samsung seized the opportunity created by the decline in Japanese semiconductor technology and engaged in a 'chicken game' with Elpida, leveraging massive CAPEX and faster entry into advanced processes as their weapons. Ultimately, Elpida, lacking a proper understanding of memory, went bankrupt and was sold to Micron's memory division."
And now, what do the Japanese claim to know about advanced processes? We are hearing reports that Japanese senior engineers at TSMC's Kumamoto plant are being ignored by Taiwanese engineers and are resigning in protest against the Taiwanese's coercion.
If Japan truly had its own technological capabilities, we wouldn't be hearing such news.
The Japanese semiconductor manufacturing industry, which had its wings clipped by a 'chicken game' at 40nm, has already become obsolete, and too much time has passed to still claim that it's Japanese technology.
If we trace back the origins, then Fairchild could claim ownership of all IT technology in the world, couldn't they?
@@YnrmzdcbMost of your assumptions on the Japanese semiconductor industry is false. Japan had the technology and efficiency to make good semiconductors. It was the US that barred all shipments of Japanese semiconductors and that’s why the Japanese semiconductor industry deteriorated. Epilda focused on quality is probably what you mean. They are efficient, but also very diligent in producing quality products. Same with Kioxia (Toshiba Memory).
It is true that Samsung is a good company, but not everyone studies for it. It's just one of good company
he litteraly bribed himself out of bribery charges... wow
Money is everything
This video is quite a bit exaggerated or outdated in my opinion. Sure Samsung is still the biggest company in Korea, but newer generations are not that particularly bound to Samsung for their livelihood. I have a few friends who graduated and got jobs at Samsung only to quit and either freelance or start a business because it is more profitable that way, let alone not needing to get burnt out by the company's insatiable demands. Although the video states jobs in Samsung as stable jobs its far from true nowadays.
That might be so, but everything you've said is anecdotal.
At the end of the video he mentioned that the younger generation isn't as keen on samsung
The real stable jobs are public officers, as every south koreans know
@@theaussiewhinger Samsung is a defintely solid choice in South Korea, but it isn't the best place. Many younger South Koreans take a work-life balance much more seriously, and Samsung wouldn't give that. Kakao can.
Totally agree from another Korean. Actually the Lee family's ownership got much more applauds than politicians. Many people don't want politicians to use Samsung to gain popularity. In the end, they agree to Samsung and Lee family's power as long as it is kept quietly and used rightly. Especially in this era of changes, people feel in need of concentration of power to survive.
I remember when samsung made cheap toasters and such in the 80s. It was one of the go-to brands when on a budget. It is unfortunate that they have become what they have become.
Hi, American living in Seoul here! I've been interested in this topic over the last year, since moving to Korea. Over here, it seems that this information is common knowledge to some, while others deny Samsung's connection with the government. We've heard "it's anti-Korea propaganda", "Samsung decides who stays in office", and anything in between.
Thanks for the video, subbing for sure!
hey - I also lived in Korea and when I was there there was mostly positive views and most didn't seem to question Samsung's prevalence. One side of me hopes the public gets more and more critical of corporate power, while the other recognizes that a rise out of poverty so quickly is gonna inevitably have casualties.
I like Samsung products here in the UK - good quality and value for money.
Oh yeah. My A71, so a midranger, is incredible almost three years on. I've dropped it hundreds of times and even in the bath and there isn't one crack on it
I'm surprised Daewoo wasn't mentioned. They aspired to be like Samsung but overstepped their bounds.
Almost entire glory of modern AI world depends on chipmaking advantage, and this is not something a small mom-and-pop shop could pull out, no matter what. So many countries, especially the whole of Europe and Japan, are dying to have a piece of action in the HBM chips, but they simply cannot get in at all, being it the cumulative result of 50 years of pouring money into it. And South Korea, thanks to Samsung and SKHynix, holds 60% marketshare in chipmaking. This enables South Korea to be a leader in robotics, shipbuilding, auto, armament, etc. Do you even know South Korea uses upwards of 70% robots in making its vaunted K-9 howitzers and K-2 tanks, enabling it to produce in 1/50 the time it takes for Germany? We no longer live in the mom-and-pop analog world. Wake up and smell the digital coffee please.
Way better explained than any major news outlet. Props 🎉
Poor video. Lots of blowing things out of proportion. I for one must say I am disappointed in this video. Korea is a unique case of this level of economic success without utilizing the profits stockpiled from colonial conquest of other countries, how can anyone expect it to follow and use the strategies that are only viable to those colonial empires? There's a reason most of the world, colonies freed from empires weakening in WW2, are still poor. Wendover makes comparisons to US and Japan (a country with a 30 year recession + highest GDP to debt ratio after Venezuela) that are irrelevant.
This video is ridiculous. It's like someone saying Taiwan will lose the global market and destroy Taiwan, just because its GDP is dominated by TSMC. And in greater proportion than Samung has over Korea.
Did you know Samsung is responsible for 1/4 to 1/3 of Vietnamese GDP as it gave Vietnam the largest economic boom in the last 10 years?
Do you know why these 2 countries succeeded when the rest of the world is still devastated by colonialism in the 21st century? It is because these 2 countries were mere FRACTIONS of great countries that used to teach Japan all its culture, technology, arts, in hopes to uplift them from samurai barbarity despite its invasions. Their destined progress was destroyed by an ungrateful Japan with a massive inferiority complex that led to arrogance and brutality. The late Emperor Akihito himself used to say according to Shoku Nihongi, he is also of Korean descent, and it is lamentable that Japan answered the kindly relationship with its neighbors with violence. He even scolded the Prime Minister Abe (descended from WW2 political families) to teach the proper history to the Japanese of their sins but he was ignored, because the position of postwar emperor is a powerless figurehead.
When 35 years of Japanese colonial rule, stealing grain and driving living costs higher, arresting scholars for building private schools and making Korean dictionaries and kept literacy down to 20% where post war 1st Korean President raised it back to 80% in just 5 years, despite having to fight North Korea (and Communist China) where 90% of the peninsula's electricity was being produced at the time and was armed with Soviet T-34 tanks and ISU-152 which South Korea had 0.
The 2 countires' destinies were further destroyed by communist takeovers caused by Japan's destruction and invasions, just like why only Eastern Europe was taken over by communists but not Western Europe due to German destruction. Hyperinflation, exploitation, massacres to hide war crimes, political vacuums, robbery, etc. is what caused the new post war governments to be contested by communist puppets. (Mao Zedong was about to be caught and executed if it weren't for the timely kidnapping of President Chiang because the Japanese were invading China without declaration of war with WMDs like mustard chem/anthrax germ bombing cities, and Mao used the time to spread lies that Chiang was lazy and only sending the communists to fight, when Soviet advisors to the CCP themselves testified that was completely opposite, that Mao kept avoiding conflict with the invaders and punished general Peng Dehuai for the only time the CCP army fought the invaders, because Mao wanted to save resources and manpower to backstab Chiang and his men after WW2, which is what he did: with 12 years of building popular support through lies, he ousted Chiang out to Taiwan in 1949.)
But ofc both Germany and Japan were rewarded by America for being Axis powers though, and given huge cash infusions (2.3 trillion dollars in Afghanistan is a joke compared to the tech and money that went in there). It's obvious when post Cold War when US monetary support was pulled from Japan + had to answer for selling US tech to the Soviets again and again, Japan was exposed for being unable to stand on its own, both in the sense that without exploiting others/getting supported by others, just like why UK falters. Japan still suffers from a 30-year recession starting from the end of the Cold War and this is no coincidence.
Common newbie mistake this Wendover is doing: just because you can stick 1 name on a big entity does not mean you can compare it to 1 entity among 100... 1 company among 10 does not so easily fall as easily as 1 in 100 small entities falling.
This is like saying "The Silicon Valley has a dominant technological hegemony over America. Just break Silicon Valley and America will follow." without realizing that scenario pretty unlikely in of itself.
This video is blowing things out of proportion. "Public dissent towards Samsung is growing in younger generations" this is totally unsubstantiated conjecture to drive a false argument. Samsung is still quite favorably viewed by the general public.
_(A side note but some people point to these companies from delving into the defense sector as well like its supposed to be big news or alarming or a problem when it's pretty normal constantly being on the frontlines of imminent war. Does anyone criticize Israel for having a big defense industry and mandatory conscription due to being beset by foes on all sides, just like Korea? What about Norway? As for Korea, Japan still sends military ships to try to take Korean islands in the east, by the way, something not even China does.)_
And is there any reason countries' biggest companies should have as small a percentage as it does in America, when Korea is proof that the contrary can work? This video idiotically citing US and Japan like they are model economies? LMAO. Japan with its 30-year ongoing recession and failed "Abenomics" trying to print money and make the Bank of Japan take the debt (the late PM Abe literally said that's what he will do), kinda like how Japan took all the war bonds and sovereign-defaulted it right after WW2.
Again, Korea is a unique case of this level of economic success without utilizing the profits stockpiled from colonial conquest of other countries, how can anyone expect it to follow and use the strategies that are only viable to those colonial empires?
Since Korea is a very small country and one of the poorest countries in the world, it was a good time for Samsung, Hyundai, LG, and other large companies to grow quickly, and the Korean government actively supported it. There was no choice at that time. Because we had to overcome the aftermath of the war. Because of this, it is true that Korea has grown rapidly, and on the other hand, we know very well that negative issues arise due to this fact. Koreans are very proud that these big companies are growing globally, but now they want them to look like global companies. There are a lot of competitors in Korea as well, and Koreans have a lot of options now. Samsung, Hyundai and LG are important companies in Korea, but they are just one of many Korean companies. Koreans are very smart. I hope you guys know Korean companies with more potential than the three big ones.
Personally I don't think there's a company that will grow bigger than Samsung. SK maybe? shrug
You present this as very dystopian but I've come to find out that most Koreans are actually glad to have the chaebol system and thank it for their nation's growth and success. I think that's a key difference between the East and West.
Note Im not a fan of any of it either.
Duh, no.
Look at Apple and how people think of it
lol they’re exaggerating a lot in the video. Also thanks for trying to understand the difference there
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
@@pax1850 So true. No one really like chaebols but just crushing them all dosen't make any profits. So rather than 'being too big to fall down', it's a matter of whether 'so do you want some extra benefit or not'. People easily overlook it, but in the past there's nothing in Korea.
@@조은희-h3o Bro, are you happy that your country is running by corporation, are you happy to be a slave? It's basically Cyberpunk
There are two perspectives - defend Samsung from outside influence & takeover. Second, it is incredibly unfortunate that certain families get to keep the huge amount of wealth they beget having the best and the brightest South Koreans working for them.
I know the cyberpunk "corpo-states" were modeled after the skyrocketing Japanese economy of the 80s and the zaibatsu, but I have to say with 20% of the economy being a single corporation, South Korea is probably closest to a real-life "corpo-state" that is (Singapore and Cyprus coming a distant second and third, what with Cyprus Merchant Marine...)
South Korea is the ultra capitalist dystopia most cyberpunk fiction is describing.
@karaqakkzl aesthetic choice really
@karaqakkzl what im saying is that its weebs
디스토피아까진 아니라고 생각함
적어도 학교 총기 난사가 문제인 나라는 아니기 때문에
@@user-exsansamprove why South Korea isn't a "corpo-state"
South Korea is the perfect exemple that investing into education of the people is the most important thing for a State.
best for a state, but maybe worst for individuals...
@@김기려-l2p it would be even worse for the individuals if it was still as poor as north Korea lol
Singapore as well. and in general Chinese/Eastern civilisations
If they're learning a diverse range of educational pursuits...
For the companies
This scenario is alarmingly similar to India which will soon run by Ambani and Adani if not already.
It's true Adani and Ambani's no poach pact and excessive favor from our government is worrying. But the situation is very, very different. The unorganised and small business sector of India is far far larger than conglomerates, and we have only three companies at over 200 billion (which would still be a worrying 6% of our economy each):
Adani - which has a worrying amount of control over the energy sector. But their leverage is fairly low as state-owned discoms are decentralised.
Ambani- This one would definitely be very bad if they had complete control over Reliance. However, despite the Ambani family's considerable influence in the conglomerate, Reliance is owned by a number of hedge funds and MNCs with varying interest groups, and so it isn't cohesive enough to pose a threat of economic dependency (though there is still the threat of them monopolising industries, which the bjp may turn a blind eye to)
TATA group - is a much more ethical firm that hasn't bribed the government or successfully monopolised any industry (yet, at least)
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
As someone rightly said that...
_Money means power_
_Power means money_
@@Naveen-tq7cg tata group has the most funding to the ruling parties it funds 70 percent of total funds.
It is not true for India. govt is too powerful in India. in korea govt needs samsung. In India corporates needs govt. govt can give a huge blow to any corporate anytime.
Large corporations in Korea are mainly export-oriented. In underdeveloped countries, it is easy to make money through telecommunications, distribution, food, and real estate. However, making steel, automobiles, electronics, and semiconductors that compete in the global market is a difficult and challenging decision. Would Korea have developed as much as it does today without these challenging companies? I hope that Samsung's proportion will decrease in the future. This should not be done by reducing Samsung, but by increasing the number of top companies like Samsung.
Samsung and South Korea is the closest thing we have to Arasaka and Night City
Now you know why Do Jun wants a total grip of Soon Yang.
Makes me curious what it would look like if Toyota and Walmart’s revenues for the gdp calculations were laid on top of South Korea’s gdp (raw numbers, no scaling)
Walmart : 587.82 Billion (rank #1)
Toyota : 260.13 Billion (rank #13)
Samsung : 250.21 Billion (rank #18)
@@truefalse934 When calculated as Samsung Group, not Samsung Electronics, Samsung exceeds Toyota's figure
Wendover is one of the few youtubers that pulls me back to the platform, instead of rotting in Netflix purgatory.
You should check out Defunctland for less serious topics but still very in depth analysis of a certain American company that has ingrained itself in American culture.
But Ironically their existence on UA-cam is to solely advertise their own streaming service that was claimed to be so good.
@@DaLatinKnight Disney?
Check out Cold Fusion. U wont B disappointed.
이건 과장되었어요 한국에는 대기업들이 매우매우 많아 삼성이 다가 아니야
The disconnect here is understanding Korean culture and work ethic. It is very competitive and different from how Westerners are. A company is one thing, but the culture is what makes it thrive. If you haven't tried to work and get a job in Korea, you wouldn't understand the hustle over there.
있는 건 인적자원밖에 없어서 착취하는 노동환경 쩝
Ironically....that might just get yourself killed in the long run. Anyway, changes need to happen.
❤❤❤❤
Modern day South Korea is designed to become almost exactly like pre-WWII Japan.
Pre-WWII Japan was exactly like modern day South Korea, fewer than 10 family-run conglomerates (zaibatsu or chaebol) running 2/3 of a country's economy.
I got a Samsung ad on this video 😭😂
i REALLY love the "if you enjoyed this, check out ____" segment at the end! great video as usual, i had no idea samsung had such an aggressive hold on sk culture but it's terrifying. of course younger generations hate it. those who speak english might pick up our "fkn tired of corporations being in bed with the government" energy over here and add fuel. i hope they can untangle somehow without serious harm to the country, but it will inevitably happen sooner or later.
What you see in sk, could have been japan too. But the Americans thankfully broke down all the kabushiki gaisha (like chueobol of sk).
well imo they can come to the conclusion corporate influence is bad themselves without listening to anyone else
@@mokisan Japan still has it. It's called the Keiretsu now. It's partly the reason why Japan actually has one of the lowest ratios of FDI to GDP in the world, at just 4%. For context, the average for developed nations is around ten times that...
@@2Links absolutely and they're doing exactly that. i meant that i hope we encourage them with solidarity, as if they feel this isn't just something they're struggling with but really a global problem. if americans weren't so centric and egotistical maybe we would look to them for the same.
Nokia and Finland is the other relationship that comes to mind. In 2000, Nokia accounted for 4 per cent of Finnish GDP, 70 per cent of Helsinki's stock exchange market capital, 43 per cent of corporate R&D, 21 per cent of total exports, and 14 per cent of corporate tax revenues.
Suddenly this channel is killing it with the pronunciations. I had no idea the name "Lee" was pronounced like that.
In Korean it's really just spelled as "ee" = 이.
lol he might have pronounced the surname right but his other pronunciations, i'm sorry to say, were just absolutely atrocious. no hate though it was so well produced and researched, and he gained a sub from me lmao. but he butchered pretty much most of those names LOL
This is why Korean Dramas are so good.
Our age has reached a conclusion in the wake of arriving at its zenith. The downturn and financial exchange crashes are influencing everything, not simply FTX and 401Ks. My retirement values portfolio, at $750K, is bleeding cash. I'm continually losing because of expansion. This world will disintegrate under its authoritarian rulers, similarly as. Assuming you are contemplating resigning yet are concerned that your annuity won't take care of the increasing expense of living, I am sorry. All over the planet, there are poor administrative, monetary, and energy approaches as well as awful international strategies.
We read news in the media that doom and gloom is coming and we just accept it, doom and gloom doesn’t always have to be coming, I’ve read numerous success stories of people that are pulling off tremendous gains of up to $250K within weeks in this crazy market and I just want to learn how to achieve such figures.
It all relies on your strategy and your willingness to stick with it, and the stock may fall further, but if you are a pro, making significant profits on this downtrend should not be a problem.
@patran567 That's impressive, my portfolio have been tanking all year, tried learning new strategies to gain in the current market but all of that flew right over head, please would you mind recommending the invt-adviser you're using?
@patran567 Much obliged, I could truly utilize the guidance, I've been losing a crap of late, I called JEAN and messaged her enumerating my objectives in the balance market.
661 bot likes and bot replies... And Susan choose to demonitize content on China and Conservatives.
This is concerning.
When a CEO is more powerful than South Korea's president
Does the CEO have his own army?
@@anntakamaki1960 Presidents are replaceable but Lee's aren't.
@@anntakamaki1960 actually Samsung does have a private army.
The head of the Federal Reserve has more economic power than the president in the U.S. I sometimes misspell "Federal" by missing a d and an e when typing it. Might be a more accurate spelling in reality.
Disclaimer: I have bought over 10 Samsung phones, 4 Samsung TVs, and 5 Samsung tablets. No Kias or Hyundais so far except for one Hyundai for a nephew about 15 year ago. He replaced it with a Genesis.
@@Timssalazar 개소리
Fascinating ! I liked it. Very informative. Well narrated. High quality !!! Thanks Wendover for the quality of this documentary.
Samsung's products are diverse, so it's like hundres of small and medium-sized businesses combined, so even if one collapses, several are still going strong.
This reminds me of the movies/series about companies acting like literal countries, where all the citizens are employed by said company/country.
basically every cyberpunk, and disney
That's the most insane inheritance tax I have ever heard of! I am surprised people are ok with that.
As someone who only knew the gist of all of this... thank you. My Korean friends, girlfriend or her family wouldn't have been able to explain this nearly as well, and I've always been curious about this. Thank you. This was extremely interesting.
Praying Korea is liberated from the corporations running their capitalist system of slavery 🙏 🙏
@@xp7575 you should keep your rotten ideology to yourself,. SoKor wouldn't even be rich nor stand today without the presence of their Capitalist system.
@@xp7575 you mean cronyist system.
@@xp7575 go north then
@@shatteredstar2149 Being caught between two devils won't help.
i saw a comment in another Samsung video, *"It's amazing how you can put two dystopias in one tiny peninsula."*
This story would make a great mini series
이건 과장됐고 삼성은 상속세로 12조원이나 내야했다 그들은 정당한 댓가를 다 치룸
Samsung isn't the only big company in S.K. LG, Hyundai, Sk, hanhwa, POSCO, HYOSUNG, Naver, Lotte, shinsaegye ect these are all big companies.
Some succesion type of series