Last Tuesday I attempted to buy an iPhone in Seoul and failed. Even though I have an F-5 visa which, according to information released by Korea Telecom, makes me eligible to be treated the same as a Korean (and well it should, given that this visa even allows me to stand in the line for Korean citizens at the airport immigration checkpoint), the system wouldn’t accept my ID card number. The agent I was dealing with was at a loss to explain why.

On Friday, I tried again at a different place. There, I learned what the problem was. From the beginning of January, KT began to upgrade its system to better accommodate accepting foreign customers. Until the upgrade is complete, no foreigners can get an iPhone, regardless of their eligibility. The current projected date of completion is February 1.

This is good news. The other telecoms upgraded long ago, but KT has been a stubborn holdout. And given the tone of a KT rep in an article I read just a week ago, it seemed the massive number of complaints they’d received from foreigners wasn’t having any effect on their policy. I’m hoping that this upgrade indicates they are relaxing their requirements like SK and LGT did years ago.

Two weeks without my iPod so far. I suppose I can hang on for three more!