(Bloomberg) — Top executives from Netflix Inc., Walt Disney Co., Paramount Global and Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. gathered at a rare joint meeting in Washington DC with a common purpose: learning South Korean content’s playbook for global success.
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Hosted by the Motion Picture Association of America, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol joined streaming service and film industry officials at a forum Thursday to discuss how South Korea and the US entertainment industry can collaborate on future growth.
“The amazing success of K-content, especially in Korea, is setting an example for the world,” said MPA President Charles Rivkin. “American content creators still have a lot of work to do by following Korea’s example.”
South Korean drama series and films took off in global popularity during the pandemic, when streaming services like Netflix and Disney+ introduced them to a wider audience. They now top global streaming charts and include major award-winning hits like Squid Game and Parasite.
Backed by CJ ENM Co., the decades-long push to make Korean content global had its best year so far in 2022. Exports of TV content soared 90% and film exports rose more than 67% in the first half of last year, according to the Korea Creative Content Agency.
Ahead of President Yoon’s meeting with American executives, Netflix announced a plan on Tuesday to invest $2.5 billion over the next four years in Korean content, which doubles the company’s investment from its first five years of working in Korea, from 2016 to 2021. Shares of Korean media stocks such as Showbox Corp. and Studio Santa Claus Entertainment Co. spiked more than 20% on the news.
The Korean TV Boom That Has Global Streamers Piling Into Seoul
While Netflix has been the biggest investor in South Korea among US players, Disney+ and Apple TV are also increasing investment and releasing more original Korean content. Paramount+ has a strategic partnership with CJ’s streaming service TVING and Studio Dragon.
With growing collaboration between US companies and Korean creators, President Yoon pledged to ease regulation and support cultural cooperation.
“I think the world is a single market,” Yoon said during the forum. Any regulatory hurdles that prevent closer cooperation will be removed, he added. “If you point it out, we will definitely remove it and get rid of it. We will do so so that Korea’s film and cultural markets can be incorporated into the global market.”
–With assistance from Jeong-Ho Lee.
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