Korea to create a ‘Netflix of cartoons and webtoons’

Culture Minister Yu In-chon meets with cartoons and webtoon industry insiders at Jaedam Media in Mapo District, western Seoul. [NEWS1]

The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism aims to elevate the cartoon and webtoon market to establish Korea as the industry's central hub.

The Culture Ministry announced various measures on Tuesday to achieve such a feat, following the increase of the market domestically and overseas.

The cartoon and webtoon industry experienced 23 percentage points growth in 2022, surpassing a market value of over 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion), compared to the previous year. Additionally, overseas exports exhibited significant growth, exceeding $100 million for the first time in 2022, marking a 31.3 percentage points increase from the previous year.

One of the measures the ministry plans to make is a worldwide cartoon and webtoon platform, aiming to become the “Netflix of the cartoon and webtoon industry.” The measure follows the current Korean industry impact on the global market as four of the top five platforms in terms of revenue are Korean companies.

A new program will be launched in 2025, which will provide information and consulting to domestic companies who are seeking to jump into overseas markets. The program will create business models that suit the overseas markets and support those based on its data.

The ministry will also expand its translation supporting budget to 1 billion won this year, compared to 600 million won in 2023, considering the importance of translation's cultural relevance to local markets.

Projects to develop human resources will also be put into action as another measure, according to the ministry.

One of the projects is to establish a cartoon and webtoon academy, benchmarking previous human resources projects such as the Game Institute and the Korean Academy of Film Arts.

The newly established academy aims to cultivate future experts in the fields of creative work, market industry and translation.

The ministry has unveiled plans to organize a cartoon and webtoon festival this fall. The initiative addresses concerns that the country, where the industry originated, lacked a proper festival for these creative mediums.

The festival's goal is to enhance global awareness of cartoons and webtoons, providing a platform for communication with industry professionals worldwide.

Alongside the festival, the ministry also plans to launch an international cartoon and webtoon award ceremony. The ministry aims to make the ceremony a prestigious event like the Cannes International Film Festival.

A new team focusing on the cartoon and webtoon industry will be created under the Korea Creative Content Agency, which is expected to strengthen the industry in creative work, distribution, investment and overseas expansion. The ministry plans to form a committee for cartoons with the participation of field creators and industry experts to act as an official and representative channel to field insiders for communication.

The ministry also announced that it will revise the present “Promotion of Cartoons Act.” The newly implemented act will establish cartoons and webtoons as an industry, providing a legal and institutional foundation for industry development.

BY KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]