Special Interview – Yu In-Chon, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea said that “The charm of K-culture is in universality and originality.”

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“I think the popularity of K(Korea)-content plays a big role in positively evaluating Korea’s image by more than 7 out of 10 foreigners. As K-Culture has a higher status than ever, I feel a great sense of responsibility as a minister.” Yu In-Chon said in a recent interview in the global economy news in korea.

Already 15 years ago, Korean dramas such as “Winter Sonata” and “Jewel in the Palace” existed in Korea. However, the global status of K-contents nowadays are considered overwhelming. K-contents are loved by people all over the world, all the way from dramas to movies, webtoons, games, and Korean food.

The global content market is entering an era of infinite competition. In addition, the boundaries between genres are breaking down due to the emergence of new technologies such as generative AI and the rapid growth of global OTT. Minister Yoo feels a great responsibility in maximizing the competitiveness of K-culture in preparation for the rapidly changing content market. He was very busy preparing for a project named the 2024 Paris-Korea Season at the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics, which is just three months away. We interviewed on K-content, K-culture, and ways to expand international cultural exchange.

1. K-content is very popular with global consumers, so what areas are you going to focus on?

“As of 2022, sales of the K-content industry (151.1 trillion won) and exports (1324 billion dollars) reached all-time highs.

K-content has now emerged as a new growth engine and a key export industry, with exports of the content industry surpassing those of secondary batteries (10 billion dollars) and home appliances (8.1 billion dollars). The Korean government will resolve the financial shortage in the industry through the injection of policy financing (1.74 trillion won) to strengthen the competitiveness of K-content. We are considering a plan to apply the production cost tax credit, which is currently applied only to video content, to various content genres such as games. In addition, we will provide guarantees throughout the content value chain, including the establishment of IP guarantees and export specialized guarantees. The government will support creative ideas to produce excellent content.”

2. What do you think is the biggest attraction of K-culture?

“I think the charm of K-culture comes from the combination of universality and originality. 77.5 percent of foreigners rate Korea’s national image positively, and the popularity of K-culture has had a significant impact on it. The external image index of a ‘cultural powerhouse’ has also been steadily rising, from 46.7 percent in 2019 to 53.8 percent in 2022. It should be noted that cultural content ranked first with 34.9 percent of these positive assessment factors. The reason why Korean culture became popular is that it not only combines Korea’s originality with universal stories that people around the world can relate to, but also creates high-quality contents with its outstanding IT technology. A case in point is ‘Squid Game’, which features Korean traditional games in dramas, and ‘IDOL’ by BTS, which combines Korean traditional music. The Korean government will take the lead in creating quality contents continuously and communicating with people around the world through K-culture.”

3. In the era of the global New Cold War, where international cultural exchange has become important, what are your plans to expand international cultural exchange?

“We will actively expand cultural exchanges based on overseas cultural centers, public relations centers, and Korea Center around the world. We will continue to provide opportunities for local people to experience our culture in person, just like the existing Korean language, Taekwondo classes, and K-pop academies.” In addition, we will strengthen our strategic and long-term partnership with local institutions to serve as a hub to support the expansion of exchanges with Korean artists and cultural institutions there. We will strengthen our support to promote Korea’s outstanding works of high quality to the rest of the world. Examples include the National Dance Company’s tour of the Americas last year of Mukhyang, and the Korean Language Experiment Project’s European tour. In addition, we will cooperate with related organizations such as the Korea Creative Content Agency, the Korea Tourism Organization, and KOTRA to ensure effective and systematic global cultural exchanges.”

4. With the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, competition to attract tourists from each country is fierce. What kind of efforts are you making to attract more foreign tourists.

“In order to promote ‘tourism that can only be experienced in Korea’ to the global market, we are subdividing the regions by region, age, and theme, and promoting marketing according to each subject. (Japan and China have the largest number of tourists in 2023, with 5,715,000) In East Asia, we are marketing mainly to special purpose travelers such as women in their 20s and 30s who have a lot of interest in the Korean Wave and experience in Korea, as well as those who have visited Korea for educational purposes, as well as sports and e-sports enthusiasts. Considering the long stay and the nature of traveling in groups of cities, visitors from the Americas and Europe are planning and promoting joint tourism products with other Asian countries such as Japan. Furthermore, we are actively introducing themed products for various purposes of travel by tourists. Specific examples include experience contents (temple stay and hiking, vegetarianism, remote work at vacation spots, and art fairs.

5. Introduce the welcoming plan for Southeast Asian visitors, which has been rapidly increasing recently.

“We are putting a lot of effort into providing useful information. We are actively promoting the development of products in connection with Korean Wave contents and the K-tourism road show, which are preferred by visitors to Southeast Asia. As of 2019, an average of 58.8 percent of the visitors to six major Southeast Asian countries were found to be tourists with their families. This suggests that more than half of them visit Korea for family trips. Therefore, we are focusing on preparing programs for the whole family to enjoy together and developing and marketing Korean Wave fan-friendly hospitality products in consideration of them. At the K-tourism road show held in Hanoi in May, we will introduce Korean tourism using e-sports to Korean Wave fans in their 20s and 30s, and introduce camping and gourmet tourism to family tourists. At the K-tourism road show held in Manila in September, we will actively promote winter ‘snowflake products’ to attract visitors to the winter season.”

6. The 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics are about two months away.

“The Olympics, the world’s largest festival that attracts the attention from all over the world, is a great opportunity to let the world know the charm of various K cultures. The Olympics, which will be held again in Paris for the first time in 100 years, is expected to attract more visitors because various new contents (the world’s first outdoor opening ceremony on the Seine River and a stadium utilizing cultural attractions) are scheduled. We are preparing for the “2024 Paris Korea Season” on a large scale. More than 15 large-scale events, including Korean traditional music, exhibitions, books, fashion, Korean Wave fairs, and K-tourism road shows, will be held from May to November in major French cities, including Paris. As the host country France and other participating countries in the Olympics are expected to hold various events, we are also preparing joint promotions with participating organizations and groups in Korea to take the spotlight on the ‘Korea Season’.”

7. International exchanges of middle-aged seniors such as sports experience tourism are active, what is the government’s plan?

“The number of senior citizens aged 65 or older in Korea will reach 9.81 million in 2024, accounting for 19.2 percent of the total population, and 20.3 percent in 2025, which is expected to enter an ultra-aged society. The government’s support for the elderly by promoting sports activities is expected to greatly contribute to the reduction of medical and social overhead costs. In order to spread the sports culture of the elderly, the government will also make efforts to promote international exchanges in daily sports. Through sports exchanges with many countries around the world, the government is sharing the latest sports programs and best practices for the elderly. Through international cooperation, the senior citizens will be able to participate in various sports activities. In addition, the government will improve the quality of the sports culture of the elderly by customizing sports programs to world standards. In addition, various international cooperation activities will be further expanded under the support of the government.”

•Yu In-Chon, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism,

Graduated from Hanseong High School and Chung-Ang University’s Department of Theater and Film, and made his debut in 1974 as an acting destination for the broadcasting station (MBC). In the same year, he won the Rookie of the Year award and showed special talent for acting. He also worked as a theater producer and served as a professor at Chung-Ang University’s CEO, Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, Special Advisor to the President for Culture, President, Seoul Arts Center. Following his first ministerial post in 2008 (~2010), he has been serving as the second minister since 2023.

Reporter Yoo. Jay(kedsports@gmail.com)_ Special Articles on Global Economy News in Korea