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HALLYU
The New Korean Wave in the Creative Industry

by Dal Yong Jin

Since the mid-1990s, the

Korean Wave has become
a global sensation.

unexpectedly developed their own local

media has uniquely influenced Korean creative

cultural products and services, and Koreas

industries, because a few media outlets, such

creative industries have been among the

as YouTube and SNSs, have become significant

most successful contributors to the national

parts of the new Korean Wave (Hallyu 2.0). In

economy.
Several Asian countries, including Japan,

fact, online gaming and K-Pop have become

the two most significant cultural genres in the

China, and Vietnam have absorbed Korean

The Korean Wave has especially

Korean creative industries and have initiated

popular culture, and several Korean cultural

experienced a significant change with

the growth of Hallyu 2.0 since late 2007,

genres, including television programs and

the development of digital technologies

because K-Pop fans and online game users

films have become major cultural activities

and social media, such as YouTube, social

in these countries. Korea has recently

network sites (SNSs), and smartphones in

started to penetrate European and North

the 21st century. These digital technologies,

American countries with popular music

as new driving engines of the Korean Wave,

(K-Pop) and online gaming. The Korean

have initiated and supported the popularity

Wave has been unique because it indicates

of local culture inmany countries. Unlike

the unusual growth of local creative

Hallyu 1.0, emphasizing the export of local

industries in the midst of neoliberal

cultural goods to East Asia between the

globalization. Once peripheral and small,

late 1990s and 2007, the growth of social

the Korean creative industries have

Girls Generation is a popular ninemember South Korean girl group.

Formed in 2007, they have sold more
than 100,000 copies for each of their six
Korean releases.

The Korean wave (Hallyu) refers

to the significant increase in
the popularity of South Korean
entertainment and culture
starting in the 1990s, in Asia,
and more recently in other
parts of the world.

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heavily access these social media to enjoy

of cultural production began in societies.

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and

local popular culture. Hallyu 2.0 is the

The cultural industries were later very much

Cultural Organization (UNESCO) defined,

combination of social media, their practices,

bound up with the rise of mass culturea

a cultural industry is held to exist when

and the uses and affordances they provide,

phenomenon that troubled many 20th-

cultural goods and services are produced,

and this new stage has been made possible

century intellectuals. Reacting against what

reproduced, stored or distributed on

because Korea has advanced its digital

they saw as the misleadingly democratic

industrial and commercial lines, that is

technologies. By mapping out the growth

connotations of the term mass culture,

to say on a large scale and in accordance

of Hallyu 2.0, we discuss the role of social

Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer

with a strategy based on economic

media-driven consumption and cultural

developed the idea of the culture industries

considerations rather than any concerns

production flows in Asia and across the

as part of their critique of the false legacies

for cultural development. Since policies

globe in the context of creative industries.

of the Enlightenment, where the term was

towards the cultural industries can no

intended to draw critical attention to the

longer be separated from information and

From Cultural Industries to Creative

Industries

commodification of art. In their view, culture

communication technologies (ICTs) and

had almost entirely lost this capacity to act

the wider information society within which

The development of the Hallyu phenomenon

as utopian critique because it had become

that policy is formulated, included in the

has been closely related to the cultural

commodified, a thing to be bought and sold.

cultural industries are the press, film, radio,

industries, because the major characteristics

The cultural industries have moved closer

and most recently, the many components

and genres have changed based on

to the center of the economic action

that now make up the information industry.

different cultural policies. The notion of the

in many countries. Cultural industry

policies in the realm of cultural/creative

television, recording, advertising, sports,

cultural industries originally started in the

companies can no longer be seen as

Since the mid-1990s, the concept of

19th century when the commercialization

secondary to the real economy. As the

cultural industries has shifted with the

Online games and K-pop have become the two most

significant cultural genres in the Hallyu 2.0 era. Unlike
television programs and films, these cultural genres
become a global, not regional, sensation.

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My Lovely Sam-Soon (Nae ireumeun Kim Sam-soon) is a popular

Korean television drama that began airing in 2005 and features the
misadventures and romantic entanglements of Kim Sam-Soon, a
passionate, stubborn, klutzy, and almost thirty-year-old pastry chef.

growth of digital technologies and

television dramas, What

intellectual property (IP) rights toward

is Love All About (1997)

creative industries. In 1994, Australia

and Stars in My Heart

sought to chart a cultural policy combining

(1997), becoming popular

the arts with new communications

in East Asia. Korea sold

technologies, and the notion of cultural

another popular program,

industry has been transposed to the

Stairways to Heaven (a

creative industries. The notion of creative

tragic story of a young

industries subsequently gained much wider

couple who fall in love

acceptance following its adoption by the

and get married) to

U.K government in 1997, which defined

Japan in 2004. Between

the creative industries as those activities

2004 and 2006, two other famous

originating in individual creativity, skill,

dramas, Winter Sonata (a touching love

nascent Korean cultural products

and talent and which have a potential

story about a woman and her boyfriend

boom in Asia has been further bolstered by

for wealth and job creation through the

suffering from amnesia), and Daejanggeum

the advance of domestic films. Starting in

generation and exploitation of IP. Unlike the

(the popular period drama series) also

the late 1990s, Korea began to export films

term cultural industry, which has its origin

became huge hits in Japan and Hong Kong.

in the ideological critique of art and culture

to East Asia (such as Silmido and Tae Guk

Gi), and it has extended its export of

under industrial capitalism associations with

Due to the growing popularity of these

domestic films beyond Asia in recent years.

the neo-Marxist theories, creative industries

programs, the total amount of television

As with Japanese filmmakers, Hollywood

have developed in tandem with the growth

program exports increased 27.4 times

has remade several Korean domestic films,

of digital technologies and convergence.

between 1995 and 2007, from $5.5 million

including Siworae (2000) (a fantasy

In the 21st century, the Korean government

has emphasized the importance of cultural
content for national economy. With some
tweaks, the Lee Myung-pak (2008-2013)
government has shifted its focus to
(commodified) creativity in conjunction with
content, and policymakers have used the
term creative contents industry instead
of creative industry since 2009. By using

. . . K-Pop has been a driver of Hallyu 2.0

as Korea exported $80.9 million worth
of music in 2010, a 159% increase from
2009. Furthermore, in 2011, the music
industry exported $177 million, a 112%
increase from the previous year.

the U.K.s creative industry as a model, the

Lee government has advanced the content

in 1995 to $150.9 million in 2007. The

romance remade as Lake House in

industry as a new driving engine for the

majority of Korean cultural products were

Hollywood in 2006); Yeogijeogin geunyeo

national economy.

consumed in Asia, especially Japan (57.4%),

(2001) (a romantic comedy remade as My

Hallyu 1.0: Cultural Flows to Asia

Taiwan (18.4%), and China and Hong Kong

Sassy Girl in Hollywood in 2008); and

(8.9%). Among television programs

Jungdok (2002) (a spooky romantic thriller

The Korean cultural firms had developed

exported, dramas accounted for the largest

remade as Possession in Hollywood, 2008).

many of their cultural products and

share (87.8%) followed by entertainment

Several TV dramas and films are projected

expanded the exportation of these products

(8.4%), while animation consisted of only

to gain even more success in the future, as

to mainly East and Southeast Asia in the

0.6% in 2007. The proportion of dramas

they find new audiences in other parts of

Hallyu 1.0 era. The Korean cultural products

exported had rapidly increased thanks, in

the world. However, the Korean film

first penetrated the Chinese market with

large part, to a period drama series. The

industry has shown a sharp decline since

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2006 partially due to the reduction of the

growth since late 2007. With the rapid

screen quota as part of its free trade

advancement of broadband services, online

tremendous growth of Hallyu 2.0, again,

agreement (FTA) with the U.S. The export

gaming has become a burgeoning cultural

one of the most significant catalysts has

of Korean films had increased from $7

sector with global revenues rivaling those

been the rapid growth of social media,

million in 2000 to $76 million in 2005;

of film and music. Korea exported $102

as global media fans use social media

however, it fell to $13.5 million in 2010.

million worth of games in 2000; however,

to access K-Pop and games. From user-

in 2010, the country exported as much as

generated content web sites to peer-to-

Hallyu 2.0: The Role of Social Media

in the Creative Industries

$1.6 billion worth of games. During the

peer networks, these channels play a

period 2000-2010, the export increased

central role in global cultural circulation.

Since late 2007, the Hallyu phenomenon

15.7 times. The Korean online game

With youth consumer groups as central

has experienced a significant shift with the

industry has substantially gained status as

figures, SNSs have become the fastest

growth of social media. Korea has made

an empire in the cultural sector and is one

growing platforms to circulate global

innovations in SNSs (e.g., Cyworld) and

of the most significant exported cultural

cultural products. This implies that the

smartphones (e.g., Samsungs Galaxy), as

products of Korea.

cultural markets have rapidly shifted, from

well as online gaming (e.g., Lineage and

While there are several reasons for the

virtual goods-driven to access-oriented

Aion), and they become major parts of

K-Pop has become the most distinct

watching markets, because global

consumers watch and play cultural genres

the Korean Wave. Western-based social

cultural genre in the Hallyu 2.0 era. While

media and smartphones have also taken

K-Pop was part of the early growth in

through social media instead of buying

pivotal roles in spreading out K-Pop and

the Korean Wave, Korea did not make

cultural goods. In the era of volatile

other cultural genres, because fans in many

impressive popularity in the global music

changes in global creative industries

countries enjoy K-Pop and other cultural

markets until recent years. However, K-Pop

driven by technological innovation and

products through social media, referring to

has been a driver of Hallyu 2.0 as Korea

globalization dynamics, understanding

a group of Internet-based applications that

exported $80.9 million worth of music

the role of social media and its impact on

build on the ideological and technological

in 2010, a 159% increase from 2009.

cultural accumulation is crucial.

foundations of Web 2.0, which allow the

Furthermore, in 2011, the music industry

creation and exchange of user-generated

exported $177 million, a 112% increase

One of the major drivers for the growth of

content.

from the previous year. Online gaming and

Korean creative industries and Hallyu 2.0

K-Pop have been the two most significant

has been the convergence of multimedia

The Korean creative industries have

cultural sectors in the Korean creative

and telecommunication technologies and

indeed witnessed a few new engines of

industries.

the integration of the means by which

creative content is produced, distributed,
and consumed in the Hallyu 2.0 era. Korea
has harnessed the potential of developing
creative content with new technologies in
video games, animation, and K-Pop.

Intellectual Properties in the

Hallyu 2.0 Era
Hallyu 2.0 cannot be understood without
the crucial role of IP rights. The term
creative industries was used primarily to
promote the development of industries
based on the exploitation of IP, which

A screen shot from the popular

Korean social networking website
Cyworld.

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Korean rapper and songwriter PSY is

well-known for his humorous videos and
stage performances, and for his hit single
Gangnam Style, which is the most
viewed K-pop video on YouTube with
more than 583 million views. On October
23, 2012, PSY met U.N. Secretary General
Ban Ki-moon at the United Nations
Headquarters where Ban remarked that
PSY has an unlimited global reach.
Photo by Eva Rinaldi from Sydney,
Australia via Wikimedia Commons.

relies heavily on IP rights. Since some

industries. With rapid

Western countries, including Japan, have

convergence between

reliable legal measures, the Korean creative

previously separate

industries can make profits through their

technologies and culture,

legal access. However, in several Asian

digital content industries

countries for Hallyu 2.0, including China

are increasingly

and Taiwan, there are less dependable

valuable to national

legal systems. With the popularity of

economies. While

K-Pop through YouTube, the revenue

digital technologies

from IP rights is not increasing, while the

have influenced

global figure of IP rights has soared. The

the production and

convergence of social media and K-Pop

distribution of domestic popular

has greatly developed the current boom

culture, social media have played a major

About the Author

of Korean music in many countries, but it

role in spreading out several popular genres,

Dal Yong Jin is associate professor of

does not mean that the Korean creative

again, in particular, K-Pop in several regions,

communications at Simon Fraser University.

industries can benefit from increasing

including Europe and North America. Hallyu

This article is based on a paper he presented

popularity due to illegal piracy.

2.0 seeks to interpret the meaning of this

at the Hallyu 2.0: The Korean Wave in the

new and powerful creative industry. The

Age of Social Media conference hosted by

In the Hallyu 2.0 era, the IP rights in the

construction of Hallyu 2.0 within the notion

the Nam Center for Korean Studies at the

creative industries are major resources for

of creative industries has been one of the

International Institute (U-M) in April 2012.

capital accumulation. While contributing

most significant aspects in the new Korean

It is a chapter in the forthcoming book,

to cultural identity and the enhancement

Wave phenomenon.

tentatively titled Hallyu 2.0.Dal Yong Jins

of social values, creative industries are

research interests are on globalization and

also generating wealth, creating jobs, and

The new Korean Wave has been successful;

media, new media and online gaming

promoting trade. IP rights should be the

however, the Korean creative industries

studies, transnational cultural studies, and

most significant area to be measured

face challenges ahead. One main issue is

the political economy of media and culture.

in Hallyu 2.0 due to their importance

the illegal distribution of cultural products

He is the author of two books, Koreas

both in protecting creative works and

and software. Increasing awareness of the

Online Gaming Empire (MIT Press, 2010)

enhancing the national economy. The

contribution and potential of the creative

and Hands On/Hands Off: The Korean State

new Korean Wave has focused on the

sector for development is a major task for

and the Market Liberalization of the

relationship between digital technologies,

the government. The notion of creative

Communication Industry (Hampton Press,

their practices, and Koreas compressed

industries certainly pushes the Korean

2011). He is currently analyzing the shifting

modernity and swift industrialization. It

Wave to be more a market-driven cultural

media business paradigm from convergence

underscores a range of groundbreaking

phenomenon, and it is a necessary step

to de-convergence in the communication

developments and innovations within

to fairly actualize IP rights in the digital

industries, including both audiovisual and

Koreas digital mediascapes, and its creative

economy era.

telecommunications.