12.1% of Users Visit at Least Once a Week, Down to 7.4%
More Than 3,000 PC Bangs Closed in 8 Years
Lee (45), who runs a PC bang in Sinjeong-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, sighs deeply over the steadily declining sales. He started the business four years ago after hearing that "PC bangs are doing well," but the reality is completely different. Lee said, "It’s vacation season now, so there should be many students, but even the students are not coming much this year."
Recently, the number of individuals equipped with high-spec devices comparable to those in PC bangs has increased, and mobile games have become dominant, leading to a decrease in demand for PC bangs. While usage fees have remained the same for several years, electricity, labor, and food material costs continue to rise. This is why PC bang closures are inevitable.
According to the 'Game User Status' report by the Korea Creative Content Agency on the 17th, the proportion of all game users who visit PC bangs at least once a week shrank from 12.1% in 2023 to 7.4% in 2024. The PC bang usage rate, which had been steadily increasing with 10.8% in 2021, 11.4% in 2022, and 12.1% in 2023, turned downward last year.
Jin (28), an office worker living in Seocho-gu, Seoul, said, "Playing games at home is better than going to a PC bang," adding, "As long as I wear a headset, I can communicate with friends and enjoy games at home, so I don’t think it’s necessary to go to a PC bang." Ahn (30), who lives in Jeongja-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province, also said, "I like games so much that I almost only play during my personal time, but I rarely go to PC bangs," explaining, "Unlike before, I have a computer at home that performs better than those in PC bangs."
As the number of PC bang customers decreases, the number of PC bangs is also rapidly declining. According to the National Tax Service, the number of PC bangs nationwide dropped from 10,568 in 2017 to 7,310 last year. It has halved in seven years. Kim (43), who has been running a PC bang in Hwanghak-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul for two years, said, "When we try to raise the usage fee, there is a strong perception that the basic fee is 1,000 won, so even a few hundred won increase causes an uproar," adding, "If the monthly sales are 30 million won, fixed expenses are 20 million won, and considering VAT and other taxes, the actual profit is about 5 to 6 million won." Kim also said, "I invested 400 million won when I started the business, so considering that, I am currently at a loss."
There are also concerns about the heavy burden of rising labor costs in a situation where usage fees cannot be increased. Kim and Lee agreed, saying, "PC bangs have to operate 24 hours, so labor costs are the biggest burden." They added, "The minimum wage rises every year, but we cannot raise usage fees. Since sales are unlikely to increase and expenses only rise, we work during the day ourselves and take on side jobs afterward."
Professor Kim Jeong-tae of the Department of Game Studies at Dongyang University said, "With the dominance of mobile games, demand for PC games is dispersed," adding, "Without a nationwide popular PC game, usage rates inevitably decline."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
