SK Telecom announced on October 6, 2026 that it has developed a UX writing guide and is applying it in practice. The scope covers customer-facing banners, product and event pages, notices, and other touchpoints. This is a change to how SK Telecom writes and reviews service copy rather than a new customer setting. Source
Four principles shape the revised copy
The guide is organized around language that is easy, helpful, trustworthy, and empathetic. It favors familiar words over difficult formal or foreign terms and asks writers to explain both the current situation and the next action. SK Telecom gives examples such as changing a formal phrase meaning ‘benefits vary by plan’ to the simpler ‘benefits differ by plan,’ and replacing ‘the session has expired’ with ‘your login time has passed.’ Source
Error messages are also written to help customers recover. A password error should ask the customer to check the password again instead of focusing on the mistake. When service hours are limited, the recommended copy states the available hours and offers a follow-up notification rather than stopping with a vague unavailable message. Source
Customers can look for specificity and inclusion
Two visible signals show how the guide is being used. The first is whether an error or restriction includes a concrete next step. The second is whether wording avoids assumptions about family roles or gender. The guide recommends replacing an expression equivalent to ‘filial product’ with ‘popular product,’ and ‘parental consent’ with ‘guardian consent.’ Source
The emoji guidance treats icons as supporting expression rather than a replacement for text. Core information should remain readable for customers with disabilities, and emoji choices should avoid unnecessarily specifying skin tone or gender. These rules change customer communication and accessibility practice; product eligibility and price still come from the relevant product page or terms. Source
Sotongi is an internal review tool
SK Telecom also introduced an internal AI agent called Sotongi so employees can review copy and receive suggested revisions without searching the full guide manually. The company says the tool uses 23 internal communication guides and about 50,000 language-review records. It connects to external data to assess fast-changing slang and can review risk elements in images as well as text. Source
Sotongi is described as a tool for SK Telecom employees. The announcement concerns AI-assisted review behind the customer experience, not a separate AI feature that customers activate. Customers will see the effect as copy is revised across banners, product pages, event pages, and notices. Source
A practical way to judge the change
Clearer wording should make action easier, not merely shorten a sentence. A message is more useful when it shows the available time, required condition, and next step on the same screen. Changes to service terms, eligibility, or pricing should still be checked in the specific product information and terms.