Korean cultural content industries log 69 trillion won in sales in first half of 2023

Sales in South Korea's cultural content industries for the first half of 2023 logged a total of 69.3 trillion won ($52.8 billion), riding high on the rapid growth of the nation's music and film industries, according to a report by Korea Creative Content Agency on Wednesday. According to KOCCA's report on trends in Korea's cultural content industries during the January-June period in 2023, the industries recorded a total of 69.3 trillion won in sales, a 2.5 percent increase

Jan. 3, 2024

KBS, MBC, SBS wrap up 2023 with entertainment awards

South Korea's three major terrestrial television networks -- Korean Broadcasting System, Munhwa Broadcasting Corp. and Seoul Broadcasting System -- celebrated their yearly achievements with their own entertainment awards. During the 2023 MBC Entertainment Awards held on Friday, 39-year-old comic writer and TV personality Kim Hee-min, also well-known by his nickname Kian84, was given the grand prize for his performance in hit TV show "Home Alone" and "Adventure By Accident.&qu

Jan. 1, 2024

98% of teens, 20-somethings use streaming subscription services: report

Almost every South Korean in their teens or 20s is using some form of over-the-top media service, a report by the Korea Communications Commission showed Thursday. About 97.8 percent of all 20-somethings and 97.6 percent of teenagers aged 13 and above were using subscription-based streaming services, the highest out of all age groups. Overall, 77 percent of the general population were using OTT services, up five percent from the year before. The state-run organization conducted a survey on 7,055

Dec. 31, 2023

[Herald Review] Monster horror series 'Gyeongseong Creature' disappoints

Touted as the most anticipated Netflix original Korean drama series of the second half of the year, "Gyeongseong Creature," the latest work of director Jung Dong-yoon, fell flat upon its release. Set against the backdrop of Gyeongseong, today's Seoul, in 1945, "Gyeongseong Creature" is a 10-part thriller drama that centers around the stories of two individuals who encounter monsters in a mysterious hospital. While the series proclaimed itself as a monster horror series,

Dec. 27, 2023

'The Glory,' 'The Roundup: No Way Out' most searched-for titles: Naver

The most searched-for television program on the mobile version of the nation's most popularly used search engine was "The Glory," with the most searched-for movie being "The Roundup: No Way Out," according to a report from Naver. According to Naver's report on popularly searched for keywords in 2023 released Thursday -- which made use of Naver's data collected from January to November -- the most searches for a television show on Naver's mobile application

Dec. 26, 2023

Exports of S. Korea TV programs top $500m in 2022

Exports of South Korean-made TV programs soared nearly 30 percent on-year to a record high last year thanks to rising demand from global streaming platforms, a government report showed Monday. A total of 728.2 billion won ($561.3 million) worth of Korean TV content was sold overseas in 2022, up 29.6 percent, or $128.1 million, from a year earlier, according to an annual report on the local broadcasting industry by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Communications Commission. It is the

Dec. 25, 2023

Will “Miss Trot 3” continue trot fever?

The sensational audition program series "Miss Trot" returned with its third season on Thursday. After countless trot music shows that tried to hop on the trot fever train -- started by "Miss Trot 1" (2019) -- "Miss Trot 3" hopes to make another breakthrough to continue the nationwide trot craze without boring viewers. Returning with a wider range of participants, the third season includes teenage contestants and overseas participants, to provide freshness to viewers

Dec. 24, 2023

KCC to examine streaming services for violation of laws amid fee increases

The Korea Communications Commission will examine the activities of video streaming platforms in Korea for potential violations of the law, following a series of price hikes in their subscription rates. The KCC on Thursday announced that the media regulation agency will inspect whether there has been any violation of the Telecommunications Business Act, regarding appropriate announcement of the fee increases and terms of conditions. "The KCC plans to convert the inspection into an investig

Dec. 22, 2023

Govt. mulls imposing antitrust rules on YouTube, Netflix

The government is considering imposing antitrust regulations on large content platforms such as YouTube and Netflix amid a sharp increase in their subscription fees, an official said Thursday. According to the senior ruling camp official, the government and the presidential office immediately took steps to address monopolistic and oligopolistic behavior by YouTube and other platforms after President Yoon Suk Yeol voiced concern during a Cabinet meeting earlier this week. "Raising the retail

Dec. 21, 2023

[Herald Interview] As a monster fan, Lee Jin-uk takes prides in ‘Sweet Home 2’ role

Netflix Korean monster series “Sweet Home” launched its second season on Dec. 1, but the story remains unfinished, with a third season set for release in summer next year. In season two, Lee Jin-uk plays liquidlike monster Jung Ui-myeong, inhabiting the body of Pyeon Sang-wook, the contract killer portrayed by Lee in the first season. “I’m personally a big fan of animation and ‘creature’ genre flicks. As an avid watcher, I really liked how I came to act as bot

Dec. 21, 2023

Director Min Hong-nam’s debut Netflix thriller ‘The Bequeathed’ to release Jan. 19

Director Min Hong-nam, who worked as an assistant director under Yeon Sang-ho on his hit zombie thriller “Train to Busan,” is set to debut with his thriller series “The Bequeathed” on Netflix on Jan. 19, 2024. Co-written by Yeon, Min and Hwang Eun-young, the six-part “The Bequeathed” revolves around Seo-ha (Kim Hyun-joo), who suddenly receives notification of the death of her father’s younger brother. She inherits the family gravesite as his only remaini

Dec. 21, 2023

[Herald Interview] Seo In-guk hopes to convey life lesson that all moments are precious through 'Death's Game'

South Korean actor Seo In-guk said that through his latest drama series "Death's Game," he sought to deliver the message that all moments in life are worth living, even those that we consider a "waste of time." "Death's Game," Korean streaming service Tving's original series, is an 8-part fantasy drama series based on the popular webtoon of the same title, in which an unemployed man attempts suicide after a series of misfortunes. As he attempts suicid

Dec. 20, 2023

Park Seo-joon, Han So-hee drawn to period monster genre of ‘Gyeongseong Creature’

South Korean acting all-stars Park Seo-joon and Han So-hee were drawn in by the unique background and genre of “Gyeongseong Creature" in joining Netflix's upcoming creature feature series, the duo said Tuesday. Directed by Jung Dong-yoon of the hit baseball drama “Stove League” (2019) and written by Kang Eun-kyung of the “Dr. Romantic” series, “Gyeongseong Creature” revolves around a young man and woman in Gyeongseong, today's Seoul, in th

Dec. 19, 2023

Localization, copyright issues biggest obstacles to streaming platforms’ global expansion: CEOs

Localization and copyright issues are the biggest hurdles standing in the way of local streaming platforms’ global expansion, said heads of local streamers Watcha, Wavve, Tving and Coupang Play, pointing to the need for government-run funds to support the industry. “The streaming business is all about global expansion. (In that context), we don’t have any issues in terms of technical difficulties against Netflix. Rather, it is the localization cost that is the issue when compet

Dec. 18, 2023

Global viewers warm to Korea's 'slow paced' dating shows

South Korean romance reality shows are taking the world by storm. The latest to heat up the screens is the third season of the Korean Netflix original series "Single's Inferno" released Tuesday. The first season secured a spot on Netflix's Global Top 10 TV Shows list for three consecutive weeks following its December 2021 release, the first Korean reality show to accomplish such a feat. "Single's Inferno 2," which was released a year later after the explosive r

Dec. 16, 2023

[Herald Interview] Korean heartthrob Yoo Yeon-seok says he wants to break free from 'good' image

South Korean actor Yoo Yeon-seok, famous for playing kindhearted, gentle heartthrobs in hit dramas such as "Dr. Romantic" and "Hospital Playlist," said he sought to change dramatically his well-known image through his latest thriller drama series, "A Bloody Lucky Day." Korean streaming service Tving original series "A Bloody Lucky Day" is a 10-part drama series based on the webtoon of the same title, which focuses on the story of an innocent taxi driver wh

Dec. 15, 2023

'The Glory' third-most watched title on Netflix globally

The first season of South Korean Netflix original drama series "The Glory" was the third-most watched title on Netflix globally in the first half of this year, according to Netflix. On Wednesday, Netflix released its first biannual report titled "What We Watched: A Netflix Engagement Report," covering some 18,000 titles ranked based on the hours viewed during the January to June period. The report shows "The Glory: Season 1," which includes parts 1 and 2, ranked as

Dec. 13, 2023

Short film streaming platform Samansa launches in Korea

Samansa, a streaming platform that specializes in short films, has soft-launched operations in South Korea, becoming its second country of operations. The service, founded in Japan in 2021, provides some 800 short films from around the world, with subtitle options including Japanese and Korean. The platform claims 45,000 subscribers and 200,000 monthly active users in Japan, with numbers growing by 10 to 15 percent, monthly. "There's rapid technological development in the way people wa

Dec. 11, 2023

'The Glory' notches two accolades at AACA including best drama series award

South Korean drama production Studio Dragon said Friday it notched accolades at the 2023 Asian Academy Creative Awards for the second consecutive year with its megahit Netflix original series "The Glory." The AACA is the largest content awards ceremony in Asia held annually in December in Singapore. Works from 17 countries across the Asia-Pacific, including Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Viet

Dec. 8, 2023

Filming set for season 2 of 'Squid Game' unveiled to press

Global streaming service Netflix on Thursday unveiled part of the set for the second season of "Squid Game" to the press as it continues production, with filming scheduled to extend into 2024. "We have been filming the second season of 'Squid Game' since July with the interest and support of many viewers. We are burdened with the pressure to do well, but we will make sure to repay viewers with a good result," said Hwang Dong-hyuk, the director of the 2021 Netflix su

Dec. 8, 2023