K-drama’s popularity is no longer a temporary phenomenon confined to specific regions. Rather, it has now become a popular content genre, a sought-after entertainment mainstay that is enjoyed by people around the globe.
Not long ago, a Studio Dragon PR associate would begin his/her day with monitoring daily content viewership. Now, the landscape has greatly changed, and the routine morning tasks aren’t limited to merely tracking content viewership. Along with searching Google for any company-related global news, scanning through the content rankings of OTT (over-the-top) platforms worldwide on FlixPatrol takes top priority. Seeing how titles produced by Studio Dragon are performing on the “Global Content” list as well as looking at the global viewer ratings through IMDB or Twitter have also become compulsory tasks. These changes demonstrate how the growth of K-dramas has made an impact on Studio Dragon and the employees’ work routines.
K-Drama Sweeps the Globe
The ‘Korean Wave’ sprouted from Northeast and Southeast Asia, initially beginning with the buzz surrounding K-dramas and K-pop. At the time, Korean Wave was more often regarded as a trend confined to these specific regions, which is not the case now. The expansion of global OTT platforms has led to a cataclysmic shift in the distribution of entertainment contents, blurring geographical borders and uniting the global audience. This has resulted in the permeation of K-dramas in the content industry, influencing not only the Asian region, but the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Oceania and the Americas.
The K-drama boom in India, once considered a barren land for the Korean Wave, is particularly interesting. India is home to more than 1.4 billion people, making it the country with the second largest population after China and therefore a strategic location for the expansion of K-drama. Though the Korean Wave has gained momentum for decades, it had been difficult to break into India’s entertainment sphere due to its preference towards Western media and local pop culture. However, since the end of last year, K-drama has garnered noteworthy popularity in the country.
Global expansion has manifested, and as a PR manager for Studio Dragon, changes can be felt in many areas. Recently, Korean content has attracted a steady stream of collaboration requests from entertainment media in various countries such as Italy, France, India and Thailand. Many are seeing a great opportunity in tying up with Korean contents, with their demands skyrocketing across the globe. Studio Dragon was officially invited to ‘Series Mania’ in March and ‘CANNESERIES’ in April, both of which are held in France. In July, Studio Dragon was invited to the Fantasia International Film Festival in Canada.
Of the 13 total series featured on FlixPatrol’s ‘TOP 10’ worldwide Netflix list from January through July 2022, six are intellectual properties (IP) of Studio Dragon. This is close to 50% of the total share, with “Juvenile Justice”, “Twenty-five Twenty-one”, “Happiness”, “Our Blues”, “Ghost Doctor” and “Alchemy of Souls” being the top performers. Among them, the popularity of series such as “Happiness” and “Ghost Doctor” hints at the steady demand for non-simultaneous broadcasts too.
Moreover, “Alchemy of Souls,” which ended in late August and is still on the previously mentioned ‘TOP 10’ list, has also ranked in 56 countries. The show’s popularity among Nordic countries including Finland and Sweden is particularly significant as the consumption of Korean content had not been traditionally high in this region. The drama also ranks high in major Middle Eastern countries/regions such as Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar, as well as in African countries/regions including Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya and Nigeria.
The global share of K-drama is significant, as suggested by various media outlets and other sources including Variety. Media Partners Asia, a consulting and research firm, has also reported that last year, Korean dramas accounted for 31% of the audience time spent on premium services in Southeast Asia, and 4% were spent on Korean unscripted shows. Compared to U.S. TV (15%), U.S. movies (7%) and Chinese dramas (12%), the market share of Korean content was twice that of U.S. TV content.
Although the K-drama craze didn’t pop up overnight, shows such as “Crash Landing on You” played a major role in creating a global buzz. The program was released around the world through Netflix and ranked high in North America and Northern Europe causing a trend in visits to South Korea from major global media outlets such as CNN, The New York Times, and NHK that wanted to discover more of the story behind its popularity.
Viewers around the world who fell in love with K-drama began to consume more and more content, causing the unit price of content to rise as demand increased. This is a natural and expected result since various platforms now seek to feature K-dramas. The number of global OTT platforms that partner with Studio Dragon is gradually increasing, and accordingly, more content can be created to meet the higher demand. Furthermore, the standard 16-episode mini-series K-drama format is now being changed to accommodate demand. The format will be flexible depending on the story including eight-episode and 12-episode format as well as series systems.
There were times when many people may have thought: “K-dramas are just a fad”. However, its growing popularity throughout the world signifies no end in sight for the Korean Wave. K-drama has become a genre that global viewers can enjoy. Everyone can’t wait for the next episode from their favorite series.
Beyond linear channels such as tvN and OCN, Studio Dragon is collaborating with various domestic and overseas OTT platforms such as Netflix, TVING, Disney+ and Coupang to deliver more of the quality content that fans have grown to love. The company will release 32 titles in 2022 and plans to produce an American TV series next year. Studio Dragon will continue to work hard as a storyteller group that brings fascinating content to all corners of the world.
