[Asia Economy Reporters Kang Nahum and Cha Minyoung] The global online streaming service (OTT) Netflix original series "Hellbound" showed signs of a big hit by ranking first in the global drama rankings on its first day of release. Interest in the original webtoon of the same name is also growing, once again proving the strength of "K-content," but there are also uncomfortable views that only Netflix is benefiting from it.
According to Netflix ranking aggregation site FlixPatrol on the 22nd, the drama Hellbound, released on the 19th, entered the first chart reflecting 24-hour viewership at number one. This is seven days faster than Squid Game, which reached number one in eight days. Squid Game, which had held the top spot until then, ranked second. On its first day of release, Hellbound ranked first in 24 countries including South Korea, Belgium, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam. It ranked second in France and India, and third in the United States and Germany.
Hellbound is a six-episode drama based on the webtoon of the same name released in 2019 by director Yeon Sang-ho, who directed the film "Train to Busan," and webtoon artist Choi Gyu-seok, known for "The Insiders." The webtoon was first published on Naver Webtoon starting with the "Prologue" episode in August 2019 and concluded in September last year. During its serialization, it received praise for presenting profound insight into human society and an overwhelming world of horror through deep and heavy themes such as sin and hell, salvation, and morality. It is also ranked highly with a rating of 9.79.
Interest from overseas readers in the original webtoon is also growing. A Naver Webtoon official said, "There is an overwhelming amount of interest and inquiries from overseas readers about the original webtoon," adding, "We plan to serialize it overseas through Naver Webtoon's global service."
While it has been confirmed that K-content is world-class, there are uncomfortable views regarding the fact that the proof comes through "Netflix." Netflix previously raised its subscription fee for the Korean service up to 17,000 KRW (premium plan). Despite earning huge profits based on domestic infrastructure and content, it implemented a double-digit price increase. Also, despite generating massive traffic domestically, it has not paid any network usage fees.
There are also criticisms that Netflix benefited from the Korean Wave driven by the film "Parasite," distributed by CJ ENM. Although Parasite, released in May 2019, attracted attention by winning the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, one of the world's top three film festivals, the traditional film industry suffered a major blow due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A paid broadcasting industry official said, "Netflix analyzes the most trending works of the time and produces its own content," adding, "There is criticism that it easily jumped on the Korean Wave trend based on huge capital."
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