Minister Choi Hwiyoung: "K-Games to Lead the 300 Trillion Won Era of K-Culture"

CEOs from Nexon, Krafton, Netmarble, and Other Game Companies Attend
Industry Requests "Tax Credits and Support for AX Production Environments"

On the 24th, Choi Hwiyoung, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, stated, "We will ensure that K-Games become the leading force ushering in the era of 300 trillion won for K-Culture."

Choi Hwiyoung, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is meeting with game company representatives on the 24th at the Global Game Hub Center in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province to discuss the new government's game policy direction. Provided by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism

Minister Choi made this remark while meeting with representatives of game companies at the Global Game Hub Center in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on the same day, saying, "If film was the representative cultural art of the 20th century, I believe games are the cultural art of the 21st century."

This roundtable, held to discuss the new government's game policy direction, was attended by many CEOs of major game companies, including Kim Jungwook of Nexon Korea, Kim Changhan of Krafton, Kim Byunggyu of Netmarble, Park Byungmoo of NCSoft, and Sung Junho of Smilegate Holdings. CEOs of small and indie game companies, such as Bae Sujeong of LoadComplete, Yoo Seunghyun of WonderPotion, and Lee Hyerin of The Bricks Game, also participated, along with Cho Youngki, Chairman of the Korea Association of Game Industry, and Kim Hyungyu, Vice Chairman of the Korea Mobile Game Association.

The participants diagnosed that the global game market is rapidly being reshaped by the growth of the Chinese and Southeast Asian markets, and that the emergence of new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) is presenting new changes and challenges for the Korean game industry. They unanimously agreed that the government's commitment and strategy to foster the game industry are more important than ever.

They also requested expanded support, such as introducing tax credits for game production costs similar to those for video and webtoon production, and increasing fund investments across the entire game industry ecosystem, from large-scale to indie games. They emphasized the need for support in diversifying export markets and transitioning game production environments to artificial intelligence (AX).

Minister Choi, who previously served as CEO of NHN, said, "I worked as a representative of the game industry 20 years ago, and since then, the industry has achieved remarkable results, of which I am proud. The possibility for games to become a central pillar of cultural arts remains open." He added, "To foster K-Games, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will also pursue a variety of policies to serve as a catalyst for new growth engines."