SK Telecom deploys AI to ensure network quality during summer holiday season

SK Telecom will use AI-based network operations and monitoring technology to proactively assess communications quality during the summer holiday season.

The company said Thursday it has established a "summer holiday special communications plan" built on AI technology and will operate a dedicated special communications center from Monday through Aug. 31.

SK Telecom plans to conduct advance inspections and real-time monitoring of sections and high-traffic facilities where sharp increases in data traffic are expected as holiday travel picks up. The measures are designed to ensure customers can use communications services smoothly while traveling or at their holiday destinations.

SK Telecom will deploy two in-house developed and commercially launched systems — A-One and Spider — as part of the response framework. A-One supports coverage analysis, traffic forecasting based on historical event data, and quality monitoring linked to AI agents. Spider integrates alarm and statistical data from all core network equipment to detect anomalies and recommend corrective actions.

SK Telecom will also work with specialists from subsidiaries SK Broadband and SK O&S, as well as partner companies. Together, the firms will carry out preemptive inspections and real-time monitoring across all areas, including core, transmission, wireless, roaming and disaster response.

The company has also designated areas where holiday traffic surges are anticipated as "key theme zones," where it will optimize capacity and step up on-site inspections. The roughly 1,100 locations nationwide span highway and national road corridors; transportation hubs such as airports, KTX stations and bus terminals; beaches, recreation forests, campsites and camping grounds; tourist attractions, resorts and hotels; and shopping malls, supermarkets and busy commercial districts. Monitoring and on-site response will be further intensified during July 1 through Wednesday, when holiday demand is expected to peak.

SK Telecom will also manage communications quality at major festivals nationwide, including water festivals and local events. Mobile base stations and temporary communications facilities will be deployed at venues expected to draw large crowds, with pre-event network inspections and same-day real-time monitoring conducted in parallel.

SK Telecom has also proactively reviewed international roaming demand in anticipation of higher overseas departures during the summer holiday period. The company expects international roaming usage to rise by as much as 20 percent compared with June, a normal-traffic month, and has already expanded capacity in its international roaming signal processing systems and key relay segments.

SK Telecom has also completed advance inspections of roughly 4,900 communications facilities nationwide in preparation for disasters and heat waves. The inspections covered structural safety conditions and the risk of flooding in low-lying areas, with special checks carried out on emergency generators and related facilities in island communities vulnerable to disasters. The company will maintain its monitoring and on-site response framework to enable the immediate deployment of emergency repair personnel and equipment should damage occur from extreme weather such as typhoons or heavy rainfall, and will provide on-site support in disaster-affected areas.

"We will use AI-based traffic forecasting and network monitoring to identify potential congestion during the holiday season in advance and respond swiftly," said Bok Jae-won, head of network operations at SK Telecom. "We will spare no effort to ensure customers can use communications services smoothly anytime, anywhere."