1934 Act Registration No. 1-14418
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
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FORM 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER
PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16 OF
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
FOR THE MONTH OF JULY 2004
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SK TELECOM CO., LTD.
(Translation of registrant's name into English)
99, Seorin-dong
Jongro-gu
Seoul, Korea
(Address of principal executive offices)
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(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual
reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.)
Form 20-F [X] Form 40-F [ ]
(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the
information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to
the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of
1934.)
Yes [ ] No [X]
(If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the
registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b):82- .)
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This report on Form 6-K shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in
the prospectuses included in Registration Statements on Form F-3 (File Nos.
333-91034 and 333-99073) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and
to be a part thereof from the date on which this report is filed, to the extent
not superseded by documents or reports subsequently filed or furnished.
SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This report on Form 6-K contains "forward-looking statements", as defined
in Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E
of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are based on our
current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about our company
and our industry. The forward-looking statements are subject to various risks
and uncertainties. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified
by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "anticipate", "assume",
"believe", "consider", "depends", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "plan",
"project" and similar expressions, or that certain events, actions or results
"will", "may", "might", "should" or "could" occur, be taken or be achieved.
Forward-looking statements in this report on Form 6-K include, but are not
limited to, statements related to the following:
- our ability to anticipate and respond to various competitive factors
affecting the industry, including the 40 day suspension of acquisition of new
subscribers and changes in the interconnection rates;
- our expectations and estimates related to: interconnection fees;
operating costs and expenditures; and other financial estimates;
- the telecommunications industry in Korea and other markets in which
we do business and the effect economic, political or social conditions have on
our number of subscribers, call volumes and results of operations.
We caution you that reliance on any forward-looking statement involves
risks and uncertainties, and that although we believe that the assumptions on
which our forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, any of those
assumptions could prove to be inaccurate, and, as a result, the forward-looking
statements based on those assumptions could be incorrect. Risks and
uncertainties associated with our business include, but are not limited to,
risks related to changes in the regulatory environment; technology changes;
potential litigation and governmental actions; changes in the competitive
environment; political changes; currency risks; foreign ownership limitations;
credit risks and other risks and uncertainties that are more fully described
under the heading "Key Information-- Risk Factors" beginning on page 11 of our
annual report on Form 20-F filed with the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission on June 1, 2004. In light of these and other uncertainties, you
should not conclude that we will necessarily achieve any plans and objectives or
projected financial results referred to in any of the forward-looking
statements. We do not undertake to release the results of any revisions of these
forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.
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The Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC) announced the
2004-2005 interconnection rates on July 9, 2004. The new Mobile to Mobile
interconnection rates are as follows:
(Unit: KRW/minute)
SKT KTF LGT
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2003 41.02 47.99 52.89
2004 31.81 47.66 58.55
2005 31.19 46.70 54.98
The interconnection rates were adjusted based on the original cost of
individual operators under Long Run Incremental Cost (LRIC) method and the
competitive market situation in the telecommunication service industry of Korea.
The LRIC method is designed to calculate costs of interconnection of individual
telecommunication service providers within a network using certain models called
"bottom-up" and "top-down." The LRIC method was adopted by other countries such
as the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan.
The adjusted rates will be applied retroactively from January 1, 2004. We
do not know exactly how the changed rates will affect the financial results of
SK Telecom Co., Ltd. ("SKT", NYSE: SKM) in 2004. Assuming that the factors
affecting the interconnection revenues and expenses such as call volumes and
call patterns are the same as those of 2003, we estimate that the new rates will
have negative impact on our operations in this year in the amount of 244 billion
Won, consisting of 206 billion Won of revenue reduction and 38 billion Won of
the increase in the interconnection expenses. The 38 billion Won increase in the
interconnection expenses includes the expected increase in the land to mobile
(LM) interconnection expenses that SKT will have to pay to fixed-line service
providers.
We are currently reviewing the overall impact to our business of the
changes in the regulatory environment and competition in the industry including
the 40 day suspension of acquisition of new customers imposed by MIC on June 15,
2004 and the new interconnection rates. We are also analyzing the results for
the first half of 2004 in view of such changes.
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
SK TELECOM CO., LTD.
By: /s/ Sung Hae Cho
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Name: Sung Hae Cho
Title: Vice President
Date: July 12, 2004
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