• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.13 no.12
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• pp.149-167
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• 2013

This study focuses how storytelling in advertising has introduced and determinated mobile telecommunication technology as a digital technology in the process of its rapid acceptance into our society. The objective of the study is to confirm the role of advertising in introducing technology into a society and the relation between advertising and technology by chasing the digital discourse produced by advertising while digital technology permeates through our society. This study uses content analysis for basic research and discourse analysis for exploring the change of digital discourse in the corporate ads of mobile telecommunication companies since 15 years. As a result, 1) 'digital' and 'analogue' discourses were found to be competing and contesting with each other across the years. Digital discourse mainly connected to a new mode of thinking and lifestyle appeared predominant in the early period, but eventually gave way to its alternative, analogue dialogue. The analogue discourse was brought with such values as humanity, slowness and happiness, which has been by and large undermined by the new, fancy digital technologies and their world, 2) whereas some mixed forms of these two discourses were also found. 3) In the meantime, digital-based mobile communication technologies were identified with people who think outside of box and have an innovative attitude toward their life in the ads. Through this signification process, the ads contribute to permeation of mobile communication technology into our daily life.