The three largest telcos in South Korea have inked an MOU to create and execute a single "Network Open API" standard.

The MOU, which was signed by SK Telecom, KT, and LG U+, intends to foster interoperability with international services and quicken the digital transformation of the sector.

Until now, businesses and developers could link third-party applications with their networks through the application programming interfaces (APIs) that each telco offered. Although it has sparked innovation, the absence of a common standard has put obstacles in the way of developers, lengthening the time and complexity of creation. 

The three telecom behemoths have promised to create a uniform API standard in order to reduce entry barriers and streamline the development process in recognition of this difficulty.

This project is in line with worldwide developments in the telecom sector, where groups like the GSMA and CARA are aggressively encouraging cooperation on API technology research and standardization through programs like Open Gateway. 

The network is changing beyond its initial purpose of only supplying connectivity, according to Ryu Tak-ki, Head of Infrastructure Technology at SK Telecom. It is now becoming a telco infrastructure that uses AI and different information-based APIs to generate new services. He continued by saying that by cutting development costs for outside clients and accelerating service launches, they would start a positive feedback loop.

Six initial network API standards have already been agreed upon as a result of the collaboration through the Korea Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA), with a focus on communication quality, mobile financial security, and personal information security.