Korea JoongAng Daily gets direct in-link on portals

Users of Naver and Daum, two of Korea’s largest portals, will soon be able to read articles from the Korea JoongAng Daily more conveniently.

An independent agency evaluating which news websites are featured on the popular services announced Tuesday in a statement that the Korea JoongAng Daily was the only media company chosen this year to be added to a list - now about 80 in total - of outlets that are carried by Naver and Daum utilizing in-link connections.

When users click an article via an in-link, the article is displayed directly on the portal site. In an out-link system, users are switched to the media company’s homepage to read the story.

The Korea JoongAng Daily has been connected through Naver and Daum since August 2016 by utilizing an out-link system.

The English-language paper will soon sign contracts with Naver and Daum to finalize the agreements. Until then, readers will be able to read Korea JoongAng Daily articles through the out-link systems on the portals.

The contract term is expected to be open ended, but news outlets featured on Naver and Daum are normally evaluated annually - and kicked off if they fail to meet certain standards in terms of quantity and quality.

The Media Partnership Evaluation Committee, an independent body that processes applications for the in-link leagues of Naver and Daum, explained in a statement that more than 50 news companies applied to join the in-link groups of Naver and Daum this year.

Lee Moo-young, managing editor of the Korea JoongAng Daily, vowed Tuesday to use the opportunity to further enhance the quality of the paper.

BY LEE SUNG-EUN [lee.sungeun@joongang.co.kr]