Son Hyun-ho, General Manager (GM) of TikTok Korea Global Business Solutions, is giving a greeting at a press conference held on the 15th at CGV Cheongdam Cine City in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by TikTok Korea
TikTok has projected that the potential market size linked to K-content will grow to approximately $198 billion (about 273.8 trillion KRW) by 2030. While TikTok plans further global expansion of its live commerce service, TikTok Shop, it has drawn a line regarding domestic service.
On the 15th, TikTok held a briefing at CGV Cheongdam Cine City in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, and released a white paper titled "Korean Wave in the Short-Form Era: Competing with Short and Powerful Content," jointly researched with global marketing data and analytics company Kantar.
The white paper stated that spending on the Korean Wave currently reaches $76 billion in 2024 and is expected to nearly double to over $143 billion by 2030. It argued that demand for K-brands and content is increasing, and beyond existing demand, there are undeveloped opportunities, including potential consumers with no prior purchase experience, estimating the Korean Wave market potential to reach about $198 billion by 2030. The study surveyed over 2,000 consumers aged 18 to 45 across four countries?United States, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam?focusing on food, beauty, music, and content categories.
According to TikTok, the Korean Wave began with K-pop but recently has rapidly spread Korean culture overall through K-dramas. An interdependence among categories such as beauty, food, and content, linked to product purchases, has created a "halo effect" that plays a crucial role in accelerating the growth of the Korean Wave.
Additionally, users searched and shopped categories through K-media and did not stop there but created short-form videos from this content for consumption. Representative examples include Buldak Bokkeum Myun and Stanley tumblers, where user-generated content on TikTok became viral, leading to increased sales for Korean companies.
Son Hyun-ho, General Manager (GM) of TikTok Korea Global Business Solutions, said, "TikTok is witnessing the explosive growth and interest in Korean Wave content as an entertainment platform at the center of global trends," adding, "Now is the era of short-form, providing immersive experiences in a short time."
In line with this, TikTok has launched TikTok Shop in eight countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. GM Son stated, "I understand there are plans for further global expansion of TikTok Shop," and added, "It is expected to spread more in countries where many users are actively utilizing TikTok."
However, there are currently no plans for domestic launch. GM Son explained, "TikTok Shop is a very good tool to expand the Korean Wave, but independently of this, it proceeds after reviewing various complex factors such as what kind of purchasing patterns local consumers show, how large the market is, and the supply chain structure," adding, "I can say there are no official launch plans in Korea this year, but for other regions or countries, I understand it will gradually expand according to the roadmap."
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