-Kakao Webtoon took first place as soon as it was launched in Thailand and Taiwan… Naver aside
Kakao Entertainment announced on the 11th that it ranked first in the industry as soon as it launched the global webtoon platform ‘Kakao Webtoon’ in the Thai and Taiwanese markets.
According to Kakao Entertainment, in Thailand, where Kakao Webtoon was launched on the 7th, it ranked first in the ‘Cartoons’ category on the Google Play Store and second in the ‘Entertainment’ category on the Apple App Store. Taiwan, which launched on the 9th, also ranked 1st in the ‘Cartoon’ category and 6th in the ‘Entertainment’ category, next to Netflix.
Local evaluations of the UX and UI of ‘Kakao Webtoon’, which was introduced globally before domestically, are also noteworthy. Kakao Webtoon received a high rating in the Google Play Store, with 4.6 points and 4.85 points in Thailand and Taiwan, respectively.
Lee Jin-soo, co-CEO of Kakao Entertainment, said, “I believe the successful launch of Kakao Webtoon in Thailand and Taiwan is an amazing achievement achieved by these three factors: a super IP portfolio that has been previously proven in Korea, Japan, and the United States, differentiated IPX, and thorough localization.” Seeing the response in Taiwan, I gained confidence in the global launch of Kakao Webtoon, which will be carried out worldwide this year. “We expect Kakao Webtoon to become a new reference point for webtoons in the global market and create a big stir.”
-Nexon Vice President “Now let’s create a word to replace ‘game’”
On the 9th, Vice President Kim Dae-hwon (pictured) of Nexon, the largest player in the gaming industry, said, “Now is the time to come up with a word to replace ‘game,’” and suggested, “Let’s create a new word to refer to digital play services together.”
In a keynote speech at the Nexon Developer Conference (NDC) held online that day, Vice President Kim said, “20 years ago, gaming was just a hobby enjoyed by a certain group of people, but now it has become a leisure activity for everyone through smartphones, the computers in our hands.” ‘Idle games’ where players turn on the game and watch, video games using cameras such as TikTok, and ‘Zwift’ where players compete with users from around the world while exercising indoors on a bicycle are all breaking down the boundaries of existing games.
Vice President Kim, who is in charge of Nexon’s game development, said that while watching game advertisement videos, users can enter the game at any time they want to play, or order a charge with actions rather than words like an ancient war general, incorporating new user experience (UX) into the game. They said they were considering it.
-5G convergence service test bed in Pangyo, Daejeon, Gwangju, and Daegu
In order to spread differentiated 5G convergence services that the public can experience, the government is accelerating the activation of 5G by establishing a system of four test beds in Pangyo, Daejeon, Gwangju, and Daegu.
The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the morning of the 10th that Second Vice Minister Cho Kyung-sik visited the 5G test bed located at the Pangyo Enterprise Support Hub and inspected the site. This is to create a convergence service that the public can experience by creating differentiated value in 5G, and to build a competitive 5G industrial ecosystem by supporting the development of 5G convergence services for small and medium-sized businesses.
Currently, the Ministry of Science and ICT is supporting the development of 5G terminals, equipment, and service technologies by building 3.5 GHz and 28 GHz 5G base stations and test facilities in Daejeon, Gwangju, and Daegu, in addition to Pangyo. Daegu and Gwangju were managed by the Electronic and Communication Technology Research Institute, Pangyo was managed by the Information and Communication Technology Association, and Daegu was managed by Daegu Techno Park.
The test bed conducts terminal and service development, testing, and verification for small and medium-sized manufacturers and helps them launch more complete products through technical support and consulting before market launch. In addition, convenience has been increased by enabling official testing and issuance of test reports more conveniently in one place in conjunction with the Information and Communication Technology Association.
-Gyeonggi Conjin operates ‘Gyeonggi START Pangyo’
The Pangyo Gyeonggi Culture Creation Hub, operated by the Gyeonggi Content Promotion Agency, announced on the 9th that it will be recruiting content startups to participate in the “Gyeonggi START Pangyo Acceleration Program” until the 21st.
Gyeonggi START Pangyo is a public-private partnership content startup development project that discovers and fosters promising content startups in the province through partnerships with professional accelerators.
This Gyeonggi START Pangyo is operated as a specialized program by two accelerators, with ▷The Next Lab·Startup Research ▷Gold Ark·Spark Lab as partners.
Recruitment targets are cultural and convergence content startups located in Gyeonggi-do or scheduled to relocate, and a total of 24 startups (12 for each program) will be selected among companies with less than 7 years of business experience.
Startups selected after the final screening will receive close support from partner accelerators and commercialization funding (10 million won per company) for approximately six months. Additionally, you can receive support benefits such as direct investment, linked investment, and mentoring from accelerators for promising companies.
Startups wishing to participate in the program can select and apply to one of the acceleration programs depending on their business characteristics.
Source: Pangyo Techno Valley Official Newsroom
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