Vice Minister Ryu: "It is heartbreaking"...
TVING: "We will reclaim cultural sovereignty and build an ecosystem"
At a meeting where the government and private sector gathered to explore ways to advance domestic online video services (OTT) and free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST), participants expressed deep regret, saying it was "painful" and "heartbreaking."
President Lee Jae Myung recently appeared on Arirang International Broadcasting with Maggie Kang, director of K-pop Demon Hunters (Kedeheon), to discuss the future of the K-pop industry. Yonhap News
This sentiment stemmed from disappointment that "K-pop Demon Hunters (Kedeheon)," which has sparked an international craze with its themes of Korean traditional culture and K-pop, was not produced domestically.
On August 22, at Paradise Hotel in Busan, a field discussion on "AI Innovation in the Domestic OTT and FAST Industry" was held as part of the International Streaming Festival.
Hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT, the event was attended by Vice Minister Ryu Jemyung, Kang Doseong, Director of Broadcasting Promotion Policy, Choi Juhui, CEO of TVING, Kim Junghan, Vice President of CJ ENM, Kim Yongsoo, Vice President of Samsung Electronics, Cho Byungha, Executive Director of LG Electronics, and Professor Kim Sungcheol, who serves as the private chair of the Global K-FAST Alliance, among other public and private sector leaders.
Vice Minister Ryu: "It is heartbreaking"... TVING: "We will reclaim cultural sovereignty and build an ecosystem"
On this day, Vice Minister Ryu asked Vice President Kim, "Could we not have produced Kedeheon ourselves?" Kim replied, "Honestly, it hurts us the most," expressing his regret.
He added, "If we continue to create high-quality content, a virtuous cycle will allow for a second, third, or even more mega-hit titles to emerge." He continued, "We will work harder and invest more to create great works."
Choi Juhui, CEO of TVING, also shared, "It pains me deeply," revealing her wish that Kedeheon could have been streamed on a domestic platform. She said, "We will seek ways to hold our IP and expand into the global market," and added, "We are committed to building an ecosystem so that we can reclaim our cultural sovereignty."
Vice Minister Ryu also conveyed his "heartbreak," emphasizing the need for OTT and FAST platforms and advertisers to find ways to create synergy together. He stated, "Our task is to produce works that showcase the power of our cultural assets like Kedeheon with our own capabilities and to establish a virtuous cycle that benefits the national economy."
On this day, industry representatives analyzed the domestic and international media content markets and discussed strategies to produce high-quality K-content and enhance competitiveness by integrating artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Vice Minister Ryu remarked, "Content is an area where Korea has competitiveness and can generate the highest added value," adding, "If AI and our technological capabilities are combined, it is a field where we can compete globally."
Samsung and LG TV-exclusive channels emerge as new platforms
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are broadcasting Korean dramas, K-pop content, and more to hundreds of millions of overseas viewers through their respective FAST platforms, "Samsung TV Plus" and "LG Channels." Recently, original FAST content is also being produced. However, since FAST provides content for free based on advertising revenue, it is highly sensitive to the ad market. Recently, the growth of the FAST market has slowed due to the impact of tariffs.
Cho Byungha, Executive Director of LG Electronics, said, "In North America, the FAST service has taken a direct hit due to tariff policies," and explained, "The first thing companies affected by tariffs cut is their advertising budget."
Kim Yongsoo, Vice President of Samsung Electronics, stated, "Although FAST viewing time is increasing, growth is lower than market forecasts." However, he also noted, "Overseas, there is a strong fandom for K-content on FAST platforms," and suggested, "We need to secure sufficient metadata for AI to learn, search, and recommend, as well as develop AI technology to improve content quality."
Yang Junmo, President of the Korea Digital Advertising Association, pointed out that since last year, the government has invested 45 billion won in over 3,100 "export voucher projects," but domestic advertisers mainly use foreign platforms such as TikTok and YouTube rather than domestic ones when running overseas ads. Yang said, "We are trying to allocate voucher funds to FAST channels, but advertisers tend to be conservative," highlighting the challenges faced in the field.
Finding overseas expansion strategies for AI dubbing startups
Additionally, AI dubbing is emerging as an essential technology for smoothly supplying content to overseas markets.
Sangwon Jung, CEO of ESTsoft, shared, "Netflix spends about 15 trillion won on content production, and 4.5 trillion won of that is used for dubbing." He added, "It was impressive that 30% of content production costs go to localization."
Introducing his company's AI dubbing service, "PersoAI," Jung said, "The number of global users has started to surpass Korean users, with thousands of new sign-ups each day." He noted that AI dubbing is especially used for educational, children's, and gaming videos, in that order.
Shin Hyunjin, CEO of AI dubbing startup "HudsonAI," said, "We are working with CJ ENM in a consortium to dub 300 hours of dramas within three to four months," and added, "Collaboration between startups and major media companies can rapidly advance AI technology."
He predicted that if AI startups expand globally through LG and Samsung platforms, it will create opportunities to promote not only Korean content but also K-AI technology overseas.
Kim Sunghan, CEO of Coupang Play, also emphasized collaboration with AI startups. Kim said, "We are considering ways to contribute to the AI ecosystem so that Korea can become one of the top three AI powerhouse nations." He continued, "We are seeking ways to provide content in collaboration with Korean AI startups and to improve their AI products through partnerships."
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