K-Book Trends -

Search word : "Bookstore", Search result : 372

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Korean Publishing Industry's Crisis and Its Future

Publishing Industry Korean Publishing Industry's Crisis and Its Future 2022.01.03 The Korean publishing industry seems to be facing one of its biggest crises as the new year 2022 approaches. Last year, Korea's 2nd largest book wholesale distributor, Interpark Songin, proceeded with insolvency, and the 3rd largest bookstore Bandi & Luni's (Seoul Book Center), is to be under corporate rehabilitation. Seoul Book Center was expected to go through the procedure considering its unhealthy financial status. Nevertheless, the expectation being realized brought chaos to many partnered publishing companies. From a macro view, how should we interpret the situation faced by the publishing industry? Before we think about the current situation, let's see how big players Interpark Songin and Seoul Book Center came to crumble. Interpark Songin and Bandi & Luni's news stirred many publishing companies. June 2020, Korea's 2nd largest book whole...

VOL.42 / 2022.01

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

The Current State of Korea’s Libraries and Their Relation to the Publishing Industry

Publishing Industry The Current State of Korea’s Libraries and TheirRelation to the Publishing Industry 2021.11.01 Libraries have been around for a very long time in Korea, but the same cannot be said for libraries that fall under the modern definition. Pioneers who wanted to establish a new country as the late 19th century Joseon Dynasty passed, followed by the early 20th century Korean Empire, had the goal of establishing libraries under the modern concept. However, due to the arrival of Japanese colonization, they could not achieve the goal, and the concept of libraries changed as they became more of a tool for colonization. Finally, in 1945, colonization was brought to an end, and the country was liberated, but hardship struck with the Korean War that followed soon after. However, with the growth of the economy and the expansion of democracy, libraries have been endlessly changing and advancing to support the growth of citizens, the real...

VOL.40 / 2021.11

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Current Status of the Korean Standard Publishing Distribution Data Hub System (BookNet Korea)

Publishing Industry Current Status of the Korean Standard Publishing Distribution Data Hub System (BookNet Korea) Start-Challenge-Change-Global 2021.08.02 In terms of the market volume, Korea is the 6th largest publishing powerhouse in the world, following the United States, China, Japan, Germany, and Great Britain, who are leaders of the global publishing market, publishing more than 65 thousand titles each year. Various excellent K-books have been recently mesmerizing international readers alongside K-pop, K-drama, and K-movies as well. Start However, let’s look into the environment surrounding the distribution of publications in Korea. Information exchanges among publishers, distributors, and local bookstores are not active, hampering systematic marketing activities. The reality in the distribution part is failing to catch up with the advancement of the publishing market. Also, as publishers, distributors, bookstores, and libraries set up their ow...

VOL.37 / 2021.08

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Book Funds and Publication

Book Funds and Publication 2021.07.05 From support and cooperation to investment and profit It is impossible to trace the origin of book funds. They would have existed from the infancy stage of the publishing industry as one of the various ways of publication. Certain stories could be deemed good stories necessary for the world, but for them to be published in the market as a product called books, you need capital. Funds might have been used as a means to raise money. Indeed, the nature of funds in the past would have been closer to support and cooperation (of course, I cannot look into what those fund-raisers had in mind), whereas funds today are more focused on investment and profit-sharing (people might have different thoughts as well but most of the funds I participate in are supportive and cooperative).In the Korean publishing industry, book funds only account for a small proportion, both in terms of attempts and size of investments. It was the early 21st cent...

VOL.36 / 2021.07

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

The Rise of Literary Agencies

The Rise of Literary Agencies 2021.06.07 There are not many literary agencies in Korea. Most of the publishers prefer working directly with authors over cooperating with agencies. It was common for publishers to think that it is safer to pay more of an advance to overseas writers who have already finished writing their manuscript or are expected to finish them soon rather than domestic writers who have not yet completed their manuscript.The most significant characteristic of the Korean publishing industry would be “diversity.” The system in which up to 6 thousand small- and medium-sized publishers make more than 80 thousand physical titles each year has greatly diversified the types of books published in Korea, but the limited average sales of each title was an expected outcome. In such an environment, it is difficult to invest a sufficient amount of development fee for each title. Hence, even though the literary agent succeeded in discovering fine manuscripts or o...

VOL.35 / 2021.06

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Audiobooks in Korea: Users and Service Providers

Audiobooks in Korea: Users and Service Providers Service and Content Providers in Busy Days with Market’s Growing Interest in Audiobooks 2021.04.05 In the previous March edition, we talked about the audiobook industry's current status in Korea and its prospects in 2021. Consumers and service providers play a pivotal role in expanding the market and business opportunities. Furthermore, it is meaningful to witness how they interact with each other in the audiobook ecosystem contributes to the industry’s healthy growth and maturity. In this April’s edition, let’s find what behaviors audiobook consumers have shown to the market. Recently-made audio content enabling interaction among provider and users, providing a new-level of “experience”. As the pandemic is not showing any signs of abating, more people are enjoying audiobooks at home instead of going to bookstores or libraries. In the previous edition, we introduced how “Wela...

VOL.33 / 2021.04

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Korea’s Audiobook Industry Ready to Fly in 2021

Korea’s Audiobook Industry Ready to Fly in 2021 The ongoing rapid evolution and development of the audiobook industry in Korea 2021.03.08 The most striking news in the new year was Influential, the operating company of an audiobook service platform ‘welaaa’, succeeding in winning 25 billion won worth of Series C sole investment from UTC Investment. This is after another mega-investment in 2020, where it attracted 13.5 billion won worth of Series B investment. Such a fast and massive investment implies that the future of the audiobook industry in Korea is rosy indeed. The domestic e-book industry says that the audiobook market's size has reached 30 billion won in 2020 and is likely to hit 60 billion won in 2021, which is nearly double the size. The audiobook market in Korea was formed in the early 2000s, but its size was trivial, with 10 billion won worth volume even until 2018. Given that situation, it is worth paying attention to the movement th...

VOL.32 / 2021.03

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Korea’s Training Programs for Publishers Today and Tomorrow

Korea’s Training Programs for Publishers Today and Tomorrow 2021.02.08 1. The early establishment of educational organizations for cultivating talented publishers The paradigm surrounding planning, editing, producing, and marketing in the publishing market is changing with the rapid transformation of the publishing environment. With the coexistence of the old and modern trends in the market (e-books & paper books or audiobooks, analog & digital, and traditional media & smart media), “publishing” has become a key medium for developing and bridging new content. As we are living in the era of a cultural economy based on knowledge-intensive industries that create original content for the cultural content industry, cultivating talented publishers that are capable of understanding the attributes of content and consumers’ desires has become a key factor in developing the publishing industry. Considering this trend, the importance of train...

VOL.31 / 2021.02

[INFORMATION / BEST SELLERS]

2nd Week, April 2024

Best Sellers 2nd Week, April 2024 Best seller Trends in the Four Biggest Online Bookstores in Korea 2024.05.07 It is the 2nd week of April, when spring is in full swing, and two non-fiction titles with uplifting, heartwarming messages made the top 10 overall bestseller list. At No. 4, Don’t Need a Path of Flowers, My Life is a Flower is a book with sunshine-like sentences that embrace the latter part of life. It offers a rich emotional experience to readers by combining writings that encapsulate life’s wisdom with masterpieces that gain more love as time passes. Another book, A Circle is a Circle, Even if It’s Dented, by musician Kim Chang-Wan, who has left a profound mark on Korean pop culture, came in at No. 7. Featuring the letters he answered to listeners on his radio show as well as the opening lines he wrote himself, the book delivers lighthearted reassurance and the voice of a “real adult” from a musician that reaches across gene...

VOL.70 / 2024.05

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Current status of each field in the Korean publishing market ⑫ Publications of Children’s Books/Teenage Books

Current status of each field in the Korean publishing market ⑫ Publications of Children’s Books/Teenage Books 2021.01.04 One of the most active publishing areas in almost any country is children’s books. Many of the children’s books in Korea (for preschoolers and elementary schoolers) have long been focused on education, learning, or cognitive development for its expected roles. However, they are undergoing evolution today as a tool for delivering necessary knowledge and wisdom for kids to actively cope with the world while nurturing their boundless imagination with entertaining elements. Meanwhile, the publishing market for teenagers, which is relatively smaller than children’s books in terms of titles and size, is growing its influence in the market with more various and absorbing topics, not to mention the facilitation of reading education conducted in schools. The teen market is breaking out of the narrow frame of a “generation stuck between child...

VOL.30 / 2021.01

VOL.70/2024.05

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