[W Forum] Digital New Deal, Beyond the Network (Mang) to Platform Daehanminguk

Our government has announced the promotion of the 'Digital New Deal' as a strategy to overcome the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis. 93.3% (832.4 billion KRW) of the Ministry of Science and ICT's third supplementary budget will be used to promote the Digital New Deal. The top priority project of the Digital New Deal is strengthening data, networks, and artificial intelligence (AI), that is, 'D, N, A.' The core of policies related to 'data' is the construction of machine learning data, which forms the foundation of AI. The 'network' policy is undoubtedly an extension of 5G investment. It is expected to become a catalyst for overcoming the COVID-19 crisis and an opportunity to enhance the status of Korea as an IT powerhouse.

However, unfortunately, the government's Digital New Deal practically lacks the 'platform,' which is the core of 'connection' and creates added value for D, N, A. The people who suffer the most in the 'untact' situation caused by COVID-19 are the common people such as small business owners and self-employed individuals, and the structure of polarization and inequality is expected to worsen. However, while the overall sales of traditional markets have sharply declined due to the spread of COVID-19, sales of traditional markets linked to non-face-to-face services such as online shopping malls and delivery apps have significantly increased. According to the Small Enterprise and Market Service last month, the traditional market order and delivery service 'Sijang Myeongmul' recorded sales of 1.9 billion KRW in the two months of March and April after COVID-19 became full-scale. Sales of traditional market delivery brokerage apps and nearby brokerage apps are also on the rise. For vulnerable groups who must be 'connected' to 'survive,' platforms can be a gateway to overcoming the crisis.

Meanwhile, to strengthen 'D, N, A,' 'platforms' must naturally be a prerequisite. There are limits to securing the quantity and quality of data through artificial national efforts. Data inevitably gravitates toward platforms that provide attractive services. A representative example is how users worldwide, beyond the United States, use Facebook, Google, YouTube, and leave various data and content. As a result, these American companies have undeniable international competitiveness in the quantity and quality of data, and AI based on this big data becomes smarter day by day. And platforms linked to this AI become increasingly attractive spaces, continuously drawing in users and data. Neither data nor AI can connect us in an 'untact' state without platforms.

The same applies to networks. 5G without platforms is useless. While it is important to build railroads where high-speed trains can run throughout Korea, it is necessary to make such railroads rich and lively with 'people,' 'cargo,' and various transactions. Globally competitive services must be created moment by moment through platforms. Especially given the nature of the internet, services provided by platforms should extend beyond borders, but unfortunately, the network New Deal policy does not mention the expansion of international networks. Korea, an IT powerhouse and the first country to commercialize 5G, does not have a Tier 1 telecommunications operator, unlike the United States, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The Digital New Deal must be accompanied by platforms and services that can globally connect all citizens beyond infrastructure such as data, 5G, and AI.

An agenda that must not be overlooked for this is 'Reform.' The 'New Deal' was a set of policies promoted by the United States to overcome the Great Depression. At that time, the U.S. focused on unemployment relief and economic recovery, but the fundamental basis was institutional reform, which had repeatedly failed due to vested interests. Such institutional reform became the foundation of U.S. growth, and despite insufficient results in relief and recovery, the U.S. 'New Deal' is regarded as successful. In other words, the success of the U.S. New Deal was possible because it went beyond relief and recovery to carry out reforms that limited the greed of large corporations and financial companies, expanded labor rights, and built public housing. It became the driving force behind the golden age of American capitalism for 30 to 40 years. The Digital New Deal should not be limited to public projects but must carry out 'reform.' The tension between traditional 'infrastructure' and new 'platforms' is already lurking under the 5G promotion in conflicts such as 'network access fees' or 'relaxation of net neutrality.' The 'Tada' ban law frustrated numerous platform-based new industries. For the Digital New Deal to succeed, the right choice between 'defending vested interests' and 'digital economic innovation' must be made. The rise or fall of Korea for the next half-century depends on the success of the reform agenda.

Kim Hyun-kyung, Professor at Seoul National University of Science and Technology