Expanding Hallyu? “We Need Cooperation with Southeast Asia, Where BTS and Squid Game Are Loved”

Expanding Hallyu? “We Need Cooperation with Southeast Asia, Where BTS and Squid Game Are Loved”

Interview with Samseog Ko, Chair Professor at Dongguk University’s College of AI Convergence, author of ‘Next Hallyu’

“Selling content to Southeast Asia—Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and others—is not just about following trends. We must take root in those countries and localize our strategies,” said Professor Ko in his Mediatoday interview.

SamSeog Ko is a distinguished Professor at Dongguk University’s AI Convergence College and a media/ICT policy expert with extensive experience in government policy, including serving as a standing commissioner at the Korea Communications Commission.

In his recent book, Next Hallyu, he emphasizes that the convergence of entertainment and technology (entertainment-tech, entertech) is the new direction for K-content and Hallyu. Drawing on firsthand experiences from global Hallyu hotspots, he presents a vision for the next decade of Hallyu, introducing the concept of “K-entertain-tech” and highlighting the need for a paradigm shift in the industry

He emphasized that the future of Hallyu depends on genuine cooperation with Southeast Asia, not just on the popularity of K-pop and K-dramas like BTS and Squid Game. “To ensure sustainable growth, we must understand the local culture and market structure and build partnerships that foster mutual growth,” he added.