K-Dramas Expand Globally, but Domestic Production Falls 30%... Industry Calls for "1 Trillion Won in Investment"

12 organizations, including the Korea Drama Producers Association, hold press conference

Rising production costs and shrinking investment by broadcasters

12 organizations: "Government must develop a national response"

(from left) Kim Heeyeol, vice president of the Korea Drama Production Association; Park Haeyoung, chair of the Copyright Committee of the Korea TV and Radio Writers Association; Song Byeongjun, president of the Korea Drama Production Association; Kim Jongchang, president of the Korea Drama Producers Association; Song Youngwoong, chairman of the Korea Broadcasting Performers' Rights Association; and Kim Taebong, president of the Korea Television Cameramen's Association, attend a joint press conference on the 4th to address the crisis facing the K-drama industry. Provided by the Korea Drama Production Association.

While K-dramas are gaining popularity in global markets, production companies in South Korea are warning that the domestic production industry is at risk of collapse as work dries up. Twelve organizations representing not only production companies and broadcasters but also writers, actors and staff called on the government to establish an investment and support system worth 1 trillion won. They said the industry’s foundations are being shaken as rising production costs and shrinking investment have sharply reduced the number of dramas being produced.

Twelve organizations in the broadcast drama industry, including the Korea Drama Producers Association, held a joint press conference at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 4th. They called on the government and the National Assembly to make restoring the number of dramas produced a national policy goal and establish a mid- to long-term investment system.

According to the Korea Drama Producers Association, the number of dramas produced domestically fell by about 30% in just two years, from 141 in 2022. The number of dramas scheduled by the three terrestrial broadcasters also dropped from 91 in 2012 to 32 in 2023. As broadcasters successively canceled weekday dramas, viewers had fewer opportunities to see new works.

The organizations cited surging production costs and broadcasters’ weakened capacity to invest as the reasons for the decline in production. Since global over-the-top (OTT) services entered the domestic market, production scales have grown, and actors’ fees and production costs have risen. However, domestic broadcasters have found it difficult to recoup their investments as advertising revenue has declined. Production companies, too, are unable to secure sufficient intellectual property (IP) rights and follow-on revenue even when they produce dramas.

Writer Park Hae-young, who wrote the dramas "My Mister" and "My Liberation Notes," attended the press conference on the 4th as chair of the Copyright Committee of the Korea Television and Radio Writers Association and spoke about the job difficulties facing assistant writers. "The assistant writers who work under me are idle. None of them can find work," Park said. She also voiced concern that talented creators in the drama industry are moving to other sectors, including short-form and web-based content and games.

As the industry called for action to address the crisis, the government’s budget for the broadcasting and video sector was cut. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s total budget proposal for 2027 stands at 9.6345 trillion won, up 22.6% from this year. The budget for the content sector also rose by 9.5%. However, according to data released by the 12 organizations, the ministry’s budget for the broadcasting and video sector fell by 4.5 billion won, from 91.8 billion won this year to 87.3 billion won next year. The Broadcasting Media Communications Commission’s budget for promoting broadcast content also declined by 4.4 billion won, from 16.8 billion won to 12.4 billion won.

The economic influence of the Korean Wave is growing. Last year, total exports related to the Korean Wave, as tallied by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange, reached $18.975 billion (approximately 25.4606 trillion won), up 15.9% from the previous year. Exports of consumer goods and tourism accounted for $8.788 billion (approximately 11.7917 trillion won). This growth reflects the combined success of various Korean Wave contents, but dramas, too, have been a major form of content that has helped raise overseas interest in Korean culture.

Song Byeongjun, chairman of the Korea Drama Producers Association, speaks at a joint press conference on overcoming the crisis facing the K-drama industry on the 4th. Photo provided by the Korea Drama Producers Association.

The 12 organizations argued that restoring the production base requires changing the investment structure, not just supporting individual works. They proposed that the government participate in initial investments to attract private capital and support the distribution of dramas through broadcasters and OTT services. Their plan is to create a system that reinvests revenue from completed works in future productions. They also called for support for mid- and low-budget dramas and emerging creators to prevent investment from concentrating on big-budget productions.

The organizations proposed that the government, broadcasters and production companies work together to design the system. Other challenges include containing rising production costs and establishing a structure in which the success of a work benefits production companies and creators.

Song Byung-joon, chair of the Korea Drama Producers Association, said, "The fact that organizations that sometimes hold different positions have agreed to speak with one voice shows just how urgent the current situation is. This is not the time to look back on past successes, but to prepare for the next 10 years of K-dramas." The industry also said, "We will rationalize the production cost structure and establish fair production practices."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.