"Supporting Growth of Cultural Content Industries like OTT, Games, and K-Pop"

Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of SMEs and Startups Announce 'Digital New Deal Cultural Content Industry Growth Strategy'

On the 24th, the Digital New Deal Cultural Content Industry Strategy Report Meeting was held at Camp One, a private online performance venue in Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] On the 24th, the government held the "Digital New Deal-linked Cultural Content Industry Strategy Report Meeting" at the performance venue 'Camp One' in Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi Province, with about 20 participants including content creators, related companies, and support organizations. At the meeting, the government announced the "Digital New Deal Cultural Content Industry Growth Strategy," which presents response strategies and tasks for the content industry, recognized as the next-generation growth engine.

This growth strategy contains digital innovation plans for the content industry that reflect the policy directions and tasks of the "Korean New Deal Comprehensive Plan," while various ministries are implementing the tasks of the "Three Major Innovation Strategies for the Content Industry" announced by the government last September. It proposes expanding the non-face-to-face infrastructure of the content industry, developing high value-added next-generation content, and strengthening global market competitiveness to realize the Digital New Deal, a pillar of the Korean New Deal policy.

Expansion of Online Performance Production, Distribution, and Usage Infrastructure in a Non-Face-to-Face Environment

To enable the content industry to quickly respond to the shift to non-face-to-face environments and secure content competitiveness, the government will promote related infrastructure, content production support, and institutional improvements.

First, an online-exclusive K-pop performance hall equipped with facilities and equipment suitable for non-face-to-face performances?such as large-scale performance content broadcasting and transmission, immersive technology integration, interactive communication, and copyright protection?will be established. Pilot support will also be provided for online performance production by small and medium-sized planning companies lacking capital and technology.

Support will also be provided for the development of various online content fields fused with new technologies such as virtual and augmented reality. The content venture investment fund, newly established this year, will be expanded from 81.5 billion KRW to 150 billion KRW, and the development and application of new technologies in fields such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and virtual video body specialization technologies will be expanded. In particular, for webtoons, support will be provided for server construction and marketing for small and medium content companies to enable both content and online platforms to advance overseas.

Support projects for online video service (OTT) content will also be expanded, and institutional improvements will be pursued. Specifically, a new support project for OTT-specialized content production will be established, and production support for new media content such as short-form videos will be expanded. A video content specialized fund of about 46 billion KRW will also be created.

To assist domestic OTT operators in expanding overseas, support for content localization and embedding domestic OTT services in export smartphones will be promoted. Additionally, the introduction of an OTT self-rating system and expansion of tax credits will be pursued, and support measures will be prepared through a policy consultative body involving related ministries.

In response to changes in the digital environment, copyright systems will be revised and online copyright protection strengthened. Institutional improvements for remote learning will be reviewed, and new copyright protection licenses will be provided for small and medium enterprises to respond to domestic and international copyright infringements.

Pioneering the Next-Generation Immersive and Intelligent Content Market

Support will be provided for location-based immersive content activated in content background locations such as movies, games, and webtoons, as well as content production utilizing artificial intelligence. Extended reality (XR) fusion projects applying virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) to core industries such as manufacturing and healthcare will be promoted, and VR and AR service development for non-face-to-face environments such as remote meetings, education, and exhibitions will be supported. Core technologies in the immersive content field, such as holograms, ultra-lightweight, wide-angle, low-latency AR glasses, and cultural and artistic immersive technologies, will also be secured.

The game industry, emerging as a core content in the non-face-to-face environment, plans to expand its base centered on online games. The development of "digital therapeutics" that can be used in various medical fields such as psychiatry and neurology based on games will be promoted, and various functional games such as educational and social contribution games will also be developed. Furthermore, markets for 5G-based online immersive games and console and arcade games will be supported.

Content data and repositories will also be actively utilized. A movie big data platform and original video content data will be established, and archiving of webtoon and animation materials will be supported. A Korean language corpus, which can be used for artificial intelligence translation and interpretation, will also be constructed.

For cultural heritage, a three-dimensional precision database and digital twin of cultural heritage will be established and utilized for 3D map services and cultural asset restoration. Immersive content using palaces, cultural heritage courses, and intangible cultural assets will also be expanded.

Support for Global Market Expansion of Content IP

To enable content intellectual property (IP) such as webtoons and stories to lead to market expansion and revenue generation, support will be provided for the development and commercialization of content IP with diverse themes. In the second half of this year, a 26 billion KRW IP fund will be established, and investments will be made in creative projects utilizing content IP such as webtoons and web novels. A guarantee program that favors commercialization funds for content IP will also be newly established in cooperation with the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund.

In the performance sector, online Hallyu festivals such as "On (溫): Hallyu Festival" and "Digital K-CON" will be held, and linked product marketing targeting Hallyu fans worldwide will be promoted. Support for non-face-to-face Hallyu content exports by content companies will be strengthened through the establishment of an online export exhibition hall, customized content, and content recommendations. Additionally, an online-offline linked (O2O) fusion store called the "Smart Flagship Store," combining cultural experiences and sales of small business products, will be operated.

To support the recovery of companies affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, a "COVID-19 Damage Support Fund" of 35 billion KRW will be established next year. Furthermore, laws for coexistence and cooperation in the content industry will be revised, and standard contracts for new fields such as e-sports and e-books will be applied. Employment insurance for artists, providing a social safety net for freelance artists, will also be implemented from the end of the year.

Park Yang-woo, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, "We expect that advanced technologies such as 5G mobile communication, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality combined with creativity will create diverse and differentiated new content." He added, "Although the content industry is facing difficulties due to COVID-19, we will actively support it with related ministries to turn this into a new leap forward so that Korean content can permeate the daily lives of people worldwide."