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Trends in Subculture Content and Implications for the Korean Content Industry

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  • Park, Ji Hye

    (Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade)

Abstract

In 2022, South Korea exported USD 12.5 billion worth of cultural content, a 4.4 percent increase compared to the previous year, and good for 7th place worldwide. Key to this performance were profitable intellectual properties (IPs) in music (K-Pop), online comics (webtoons), television series (dramas), and film. Global over-the-top (OTT) streaming powerhouse Netflix has made and continues to make large-scale investments in original Korean IP to grow its subscriber base and recently has focused these investments on securing video game and webtoon IPs. Recently, players in the content industry are paying increasingly more attention to trends in subculture and are now looking to secure IPs related to various subcultures to preempt the market as competition for IPs between existing market players intensifies. Subcultures have formed around webtoons and virtual novellas, games, animations, and internet stars (content creators and streamers), and this buzz has piqued the mainstream content industry’s interest. In this paper, I examine some major subcultures active in Korea and explore how industry players could leverage them for export and continued growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Park, Ji Hye, 2024. "Trends in Subculture Content and Implications for the Korean Content Industry," Industrial Economic Review 24-31, Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade.
    • Handle: RePEc:ris:kieter:2024_031
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    K-Pop; K-Drama; hallyu; 한류; Korean wave; manwha; webtoons; cartoons; manga; video games; phone games; streaming; Netflix; subculture; indie culture; otaku; V-Tubers; Genshin Impact; fandom; South Korea; China; content industry; KIET;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L82 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Entertainment; Media
    • L86 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Information and Internet Services; Computer Software
    • L88 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Government Policy

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