Known as the "Korean Wave" or Hallyu, South Korea's entertainment industry has enjoyed a global boom in recent years. Its music market, led by K-pop groups such as BTS and Blackpink, have been leading the charge.
In 2021, exports of content including music, video games and films reached a record high of $12.4 billion, according to the latest government data, leaving behind home appliances and rechargeable batteries in export volume. "We were able to make this decision because we have great confidence that the Korean creative industry will continue to tell great stories," Sarandos said in a statement, citing the streaming platform's global hits produced by South Korean creators such as "Squid Game", "The Glory" and "Physical:100". "Squid Game", a 2021 release, remains Netflix's most-watched series of all-time, having racked up 1.65 billion hours of streaming in the first 28 days. Netflix offered a lighter-than-expected forecast last week, as it looks to crack down on unsanctioned password sharing into the second quarter to make improvements, delaying some financial benefits. (Reporting by Hyunsu Yim in Seoul, Mrinmay Dey and Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel, Shailesh Kuber and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
