The Korean government plans to wrap up the privatization of Korea Telecom by the end of two thousand two.
The nation's largest fixed-line carrier and biggest broadband service provider ... has been negotiating with several potential foreign partners. A company official said negotiations will be completed by the end of this year.
The government holds about a 40 percent stake in Korea Telecom.
The government had previously set the privatization deadline by mid-two-thousand two. But the chief financial officer of Korea Telecom said the company doesn't want to sell stakes at a firesale price.
The Information and Communication Minister said in July that U.S. software giant Microsoft was among the potential buyers.