Government
Korea launches ‘Startup Campus’ in Pangyo
2016년 03월 26일

South Korea opened its largest startup complex near Seoul on Tuesday as part of its efforts to boost promising local startups and attract foreign companies. The “startup campus” in Pangyo, just south of Seoul, is designed to nurture more than 200 startups, offering workspace and consulting services for capital funding, according to the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning. They include the Yozma Group, an Israel-based global venture capital firm, and TEDCO,…

Korean Government Geeks Bearing Gifts
2015년 12월 10일

Cautious optimism abounds across Korea’s fast-growing startup scene. Following a national policy shift that has recognized the realities and opportunities of the present age, Korean entrepreneurial talent is finally receiving the level of public sector support needed for success. The export-oriented growth formula that helped Korean conglomerates drive economic development for decades following the Korean War is unlikely to continue its impressive historical returns, and the Park administration has sought to replace…

Korea Rising: The 3 Pillars of Korea’s Startup Ecosystem
2015년 10월 28일

Editor’s note:  Senior Director Corporate Development at Baedal Minjok There is no doubt that Korea is in a revolutionary moment. In my last post, “Korea Rising”, I illustrated the unique position Korea is currently in. Leaving it with only one option: Build. The Korean War (1950–1953) left the country in a state of utter disorder. The bustling metropolis we reside in today was but a dream when basic running water was a…

The Korean Gaming Industry Doesn’t Stick Out As One That Needs Support… But They’re Getting It
2014년 12월 20일

According to an article on Business Korea, the Korean government is planning to invest at least $209 million USD over the next five years to promote the growth of the game industry. This comes in a year where game developer 4:33 Creative Labs raised around $110 million USD from Tencent / Line, Smilegate bought a $110 million USD stake in Sunday Toz, Devsisters went public at a $627 million USD valuation, we announced…

Korean Government Plans Easing of Fintech and IoT Regulations To Encourage Growth
2014년 12월 16일

As reported by Business Korea, the  Korean government recently announced that it plans to relax regulations on new innovation-driven industries, including as financial technology (fintech) and the Internet of Things (IoT). This is a positive regulatory signal for local startups in these industries that have struggled against regulation. It also bodes well for the new startup accelerator in Seongdo, that will run its first hardware / IoT / Smart home program in 2015. At…

KakaoTalk Answers User Concerns Over Privacy, Adds ‘Secret Chat’ Function
2014년 12월 09일

Perhaps in response to user concerns around privacy, Daum Kakao has just introduced ‘Secret Chat’ mode and ‘Decline Invites’ features for their KakaoTalk messenger, adding a higher level of privacy to the service. The new features provide users with increased options on how communications are carried out – and with whom. Secret Chat mode is a new type of chatroom that employs end-to-end encryption on all messages exchanged within the chatroom. The…

Is The Korean Government Doing Too Much in Support Of Entrepreneurship?
2014년 10월 22일

“We look forward to another success story with startups here in Daejon,” said President Park Geun-hye during a ceremony to launch yet another innovation center in Korea. While government support for Korean startups has been impressive, is it time for the politicians to take a step back? At some point the ecosystem must be allowed to develop of its own volition and startups surviving off the back of government handouts alone must…

$1 Billion Invested In Startups As Corporates and Government Rally Behind Entrepreneurship
2014년 10월 21일

Sources in the Goverment have confirmed that a total of around $1 billion was invested in startups in the first nine months of the year. This represents a 9.5% increase from a year earlier. The number of startups that received investment also increased to 619 from 579 over the same period. The increase in funding has been attributed to a rise in activity by institutional investors and private venture funds, as well as government investment…

New Global Strategies Required For Korea To Realize Opportunities In ICT
2014년 10월 01일

For as much as the last fifteen years Korea has been emerging as one of the front-runners in global tech innovation, but has failed time and time again to capitalize fully on the opportunities. Smartphones, 4G mobile internet, MP3 players, social networks, and mobile payments are just a few examples. Nowadays, the U.S. and China, not Korea, are spearheading the growth of these markets and Korea is at a dangerous position, likely…

Korean Government To Turn Its Back On Microsoft… And Use What Instead, Hangul?
2014년 07월 03일

As has been reported widely in Asia, South Korea is using the fact that Windows XP is no longer supported as a reason to walk away from Microsoft completely. While the rational for this stance makes sense; updating to new versions of the Microsoft software can be expensive and time-consuming, the government should also immediately discontinue its use of Hangul. Hangul is a Korean software package similar to MS Office that is used as the default (and…

Korea’s Pivotal Moment As Entrepreneurship Takes Centre Stage
2014년 03월 31일

In January in Davos, Switzerland, South Korea’s first female President, Park Geun-Hye pushed forward with a multi-billion “Creative Economy” policy. Although Korea has seen a great rise in GDP and living conditions in the last 50 years, President Park now believes the current economic growth environment in Korea has reached its limit, and just like startups often need to, she has decided to pivot the Korean economy to embrace innovation as a…

South Korean Startup Support Gets Mixed Reception
2014년 02월 11일

Published on the Wall Street Journal, February 11 2013 First Year Raises Efficacy Concerns; Government Says Project Continues to Improve In the past year, the South Korean government has sponsored a raft of overseas programs to give its young startups exposure to global tech trends. Government officials here hope that a thriving local startup scene could soon put fresh Korean technology names on the global stage—and they are sparing no expense to…

Toward A ‘Virtuous Circle’: Government Supporting Startup and Venture Ecosystem
2014년 01월 14일

With the government’s measures to create a virtuous circle out of the start-up and venture ecosystem in full swing this year, there is growing anticipation that this year will be the first year of the second venture era. The anticipation is due to the fact that most of the venture industry’s long-cherished desires were already fulfilled. “Now it is time for the market to swing into high gear,” stated representatives of venture…

Korean Government to promote Software Innovation in Key Domestic Industries in 2014
2014년 01월 02일

In 2014 The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) will a role out a raft of mid-to long-term software projects to bolster a number of domestic strategic industries. This will be achieved by developing 100 key software platforms for SMEs and foster high-quality human resources by organizing various educational programs. While it is certainly a positive step that the government is supporting these key industries, and is dedicated to bolstering innovation in…

Kakao, Government, Startups: What Will 2013 Have In Store For Korea?
  ·  2013년 06월 13일

We wrote previously about the current situation in the South Korean startup ecosystem. We said that the global startup capital is declining whereas the Korean venture world is seeing more fundings, more startups, and more enthusiasm. The rise of startups in Korea really started with KakaoTalk i n 2010, and since then we have seen $191 million US dollars raised in Korea (in 2013, up from $189 mil in 2012), and increase…

Korea’s Startup Scene Still Growing Fast
  ·  2013년 06월 05일

Korea is still seeing some immense growth. According to the Korean Venture Capital Association, venture capital firms in Korea raised $191 million in the first quarter this year, up slightly from $189  million in 2012. Interestingly, there is a general slowdown in the U.S. startup scene – U.S. venture capital firms raised $4.1 billion from 35 funds during the first quarter of this year according to the National Venture Capital Association (this is about a 34%…