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| ▲ Culture Minister nominee Chae Hwi-young speaks during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly in Seoul on July 29, 2025. (Yonhap) |
SEOUL, July 29 (Yonhap) -- Chae Hwi-young, the nominee for minister of culture, sports and tourism, pledged Tuesday to expand South Korea's "K-culture" market to 300 trillion won ($215.4 billion), with a focus on AI-driven content strategies.
During his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly, Chae highlighted the Korean content industry's growing economic impact, citing 2023 figures of 154 trillion won in domestic sales and $13.3 billion in exports, supported by an average annual growth rate of 5 to 6 percent.
The content industry includes sectors such as publishing, broadcasting, advertising, music, gaming, animation, films, musicals, and other creative media.
To accelerate the growth, Chae pledged to strengthen policy-based financing, provide tax incentives, and invest in cultural technology R&D. He also emphasized supporting companies seeking to expand into global markets.
A key pillar of his vision is preparing the industry for the AI era.
"I'll develop strategies to transform the content industry ecosystem -- from AI-based creation and production to distribution -- and support the development of AI training data rooted in our history and culture," Chae said.
He also vowed to reinforce the foundation of Korea's cultural and artistic landscape by expanding creative spaces, protecting artists' rights, ensuring swift resolution of copyright violations, and establishing a stronger social safety net for creators. He further promised to nurture core talent and increase opportunities for young and disabled artists.
To improve public access to culture and the arts, Chae said he would enhance cultural education programs and expand community-based cultural initiatives.
In the tourism sector, he pledged to attract 30 million inbound visitors by developing compelling tourism content and modernizing the industry.
About 16.37 million foreign tourists visited the country in 2024, according to the Korea Tourism Organization.
As part of this goal, Chae plans to improve convenience for travelers and innovate services from arrival to departure.
"We will build an innovative tourism ecosystem by supporting the digital and AI transformation of tourism companies and by streamlining outdated regulations," he added.
sshim@yna.co.kr
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