The number two mobile phone manufacturer in South Korea - today announced that it has been honored for the second consecutive year at the prestigious iF (International Forum) Design Awards for excellence and innovation in the design of cellular phones.

Three of the company's products were recognized at the awards ceremony: the PG-6200 handset, recently renamed the G-6200, and the 'WIDE CUBE' and the 'Transformer' concept models. At last year's iF Design Awards, Pantech was honored for two of its flagship phones, the PH-L4000V camcorder phone and the PH-S4000 MP3 player handset.

Sung-Kyu Lee, President & CEO of Pantech&Curitel Communications, Inc., said: "Our focus on design is one of our primary competitive strengths. More than half of our employees are committed to R&D, with a view to producing new designs that have not been seen before in the global mobile industry. It is a huge endorsement of our product development strategy to have our designs honored by prestigious institutions like the International Forum".

"These models not only represent the design innovation of Pantech, but they also signify the positive synergies arising from the merger last year of SK Teletech into the Pantech Group. Going forward, as we develop the Pantech brand worldwide, our capacity to produce new and exciting handset designs will be a cornerstone of our strategy to maintain and increase consumer satisfaction and brand loyalty across all markets," said Mr. Lee.

The G-6200, a biometric multimedia phone having fingerprint recognition functionality, was selected as a winner in consumer electronics. It reveals its major design attributes when folded, revealing a unique side contour in the form of a smooth flowing curve.

The WIDE CUBE advanced concept phone is designed to give consumers a more user friendly mobile experience, while showcasing more innovative functionality. The luxurious design is optimized for digital camera and DMB/MOD applications. The Transformer handset is designed to combine numerous multimedia functions with clarity of layout and ease of use. Its large, portrait-format touch screen vertically slides with a folding leg support for TV function.