DIGITAL & TRENDS

Streaming in South Korea

 Table of Contents

01 Overview Content preferred on SVoD services South Korea 2020 21

Average spending on OTT services in South Korea 2020, by age 22
Online media usage rate South Korea 2021, by age group 03
Most used content types South Korea 2021 04
04 Streaming of other contents
Spending on digital media downloads and subscriptions South Korea 2022, by media type 05
Cloud service usage rate streaming personal content South Korea 2020, by age group 06 Most commonly used type of audio contents South Korea 2021 24

Internet VOD movie film sales in South Korea 2013-2022 07 Leading factors choosing podcast South Korea 2019 25
Leading South Korean twitch channels by average viewers 2022 26

02 Music streaming Interest in console-less game streaming services among gamers South Korea 2020 27
Reasons against subscribing to game streaming services among gamers South Korea 2021 28
Share of internet users consuming online audio weekly in South Korea Q3 2022, by type 09
Devices used for music listening South Korea 2022 10
Willingness to pay for online music content South Korea 2022 11
Most commonly used music services South Korea 2021 12
Music streaming services usage frequency South Korea 2022 13
Most frequently used music streaming or download services South Korea 2022 14
Popular paid music streaming apps among people in their 20s South Korea 2022 15

03 Video streaming
Share of internet users watching online videos weekly in South Korea Q3 2022, by type 17
Usage frequency of VoD and video streaming services South Korea 2021, by gender 18
Popular OTT video services by number of users South Korea 2022 19
Devices to watch VoD and video streaming services South Korea 2021 20

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CHAPTER 01

Overview
 Online media usage rate in South Korea in 2021, by age group
Online media usage rate South Korea 2021, by age group

Share of respondents
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

6-19 years 95.4%

20-29 years 100%

30-39 years 99.9%

40-49 years 99.7%

50-59 years 99.1%

60-69 years 100%

70 years and older 94.3%

3 Description: This statistic represents the results of a survey on the online media age rate in South Korea in 2021, broken down by age group. That year, the online media usage rate of respondents aged between 20 and 29 years old amounted to 100 percent. The same
was true for respondents in their sixties. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; August 2 to September 30, 2021; 25,000 households; 3 years and older; internet users
Source(s): Korean Internet & Security Agency; Market Metrix; Ministry of Science and ICT (South Korea); NIA
 Most commonly used types of contents in South Korea as of July 2021
Most used content types South Korea 2021

100% 94.2%

90%

80%

70%
Share of respondents

59.3%
60% 54.1% 52.6%
50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Video (movie, series, etc) Text (book, news, e-book) Cartoon (webtoon, comics) Audio (music, podcast)

4 Description: According to a survey conducted among South Koreans in July 2021, around 94.2 percent of respondents consumed video content most often out of the listed digital contents. Texts, cartoons and audio were far behind but rather close to each other. Read
more
Note(s): South Korea; July 23 to 26, 2021; 1,000 respondents; 15-59 years; residents in South Korea
Source(s): Cosmetic Insight; Opensurvey
 Annual spending on downloads and subscriptions of digital media in
South Korea in 2022, by type of media (in billion U.S. dollars)
Spending on digital media downloads and subscriptions South Korea 2022, by media type

Spending in billion U.S. dollars

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

Total 14.42

Video games 11.91

VOD 1.45

ePublishing 0.74

Digital music 0.33

5 Description: In 2022, over 11.9 billion U.S. dollars were spent on digital subscriptions and downloads of video games in South Korea. This type of digital media saw the highest spending by far, followed by video-on-demand (VOD). A total of around 14.4 billion dollars
were spent on digital media subscriptions and downloads that year. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; 2022
Source(s): DataReportal; Meltwater; Statista Digital Market Insights; We Are Social
 Cloud service usage rate for personal streaming of multimedia contents in
South Korea in 2020, by age group
Cloud service usage rate streaming personal content South Korea 2020, by age group

70%

60.3%
60% 57.5%
55%

49.3% 50.5%
50% 48.1%
Share of respondents

40% 35.9%

30%

20%

10%

0%
12-19 years 20-29 years 30-39 years 40-49 years 50-59 years 60-69 years 70 years and older

6 Description: According to a survey conducted in 2020, around 60.3 percent of South Korean cloud users in their sixties stated that they used cloud services to stream multimedia contents. Slightly less than half of teenage respondents streamed via cloud services.
Read more
Note(s): South Korea; August 3 to September 30, 2020; 25,000 households; 12 years and older; cloud users
Source(s): Korean Internet & Security Agency; Market Metrix; Ministry of Science and ICT (South Korea); NIA
 Sales revenue of the Internet video on demand (VOD) movie market in
South Korea from 2013 to 2022 (in billion South Korean won)
Internet VOD movie film sales in South Korea 2013-2022

180 169.9

160
Sales revenue in billion South Korean won

140

120
106.7

100 93

78.8
80 72.9 75.2 72.8
67.9
58.2
60 49.9

40

20

0
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

7 Description: In 2022, the sales value of movies on online VOD stores amounted to around 170 billion South Korean won. This represents an increase from the previous year. The domestic online VOD market has experienced fast-paced growth since 2021. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; 2013 to 2022
Source(s): KOFIC
CHAPTER 02

Music streaming
 Distribution of online audio content listened to weekly by internet users in
South Korea as of the 3rd quarter of 2022, by type of content
Share of internet users consuming online audio weekly in South Korea Q3 2022, by type

50%

45% 42.9%

40%

35%
Share of internet users

30%

25%

20%

15% 12.8% 12%

9.9%
10%

5%

0%
Music streaming services Online radio shows or stations Audio books Podcasts

9 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in the third quarter of 2022, around 43 percent of respondents stated that they used music streaming services on a weekly basis. This made it the most commonly accessed type of online audio content by
far, followed by listening to online radio. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; Q3 2022; 16-64 years; among internet users
Source(s): DataReportal; GWI; Meltwater; We Are Social
 Most commonly used devices to listen to music in South Korea as of
August 2022
Devices used for music listening South Korea 2022

Share of respondents

Smartphone 86%

Computer/laptop 43.1%

TV 40.1%

Radio 21.4%

Tablet PC 17.8%

Car audio 11%

CD/DVD/Blu-ray player 7.7%

MP3 player 7.6%

AI speaker 6.9%

LP player (turntable) 2.5%

Others 0.1%

10 Description: According to a survey conducted among South Korean music listeners in 2022, around 86 percent of respondents stated that they most commonly used their smartphone to listen to music. Other popular devices used to listen to music were computers or
laptops as well as TVs. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; July 22 to August 26, 2022; 3,500 respondents; 10-69 years; people who experienced music content over the past year
Source(s): Global Research; Korea Creative Content Agency
 Willingness to pay for listening to music online in South Korea as of August
2022, by amount of monthly payment
Willingness to pay for online music content South Korea 2022

Share of respondents
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Monthly payment in thousand South Korean won

10k KRW or less 54.9%

10k-30k KRW 27.5%

30k-50k KRW 10.3%

50k-80k KRW 3.8%

80k-100k KRW 2.5%

100k KRW and more 1%

11 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in 2022, around 55 percent of respondents stated that they were willing to pay ten thousand South Korean won or less per month to listen to music online. A further 27.5 percent were willing to pay up to 30
thousand won. The willingness to pay falls sharply thereafter. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; July 22 to August 26, 2022; 2,835 respondents; 10-69 years; people who experienced music content over the past year
Source(s): Global Research; Korea Creative Content Agency
 Most commonly used services to listen to music content in South Korea as
of July 2021
Most commonly used music services South Korea 2021

Share of respondents
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

YouTube 68.1%
Melon 42.5%
genie 22.5%
YouTube Music 21%
FLO 16.7%
Samsung Music 9.2%
Vibe 7.3%
soundcloud 6%
Kakao Music 5.4%
Apple Music 4.4%
Bugs! 4%
Spotify 3.5%
soribada 0.8%

12 Description: According to a survey conducted among South Koreans in July 2021, around 68.1 percent of respondents stated that they used YouTube to listen to music. Following was South Korea's largest music subscription service Melon, with around 42.5 percent of
respondents answering to use it. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; July 23 to 26, 2021; 1,000 respondents; 15-59 years
Source(s): Cosmetic Insight; Opensurvey
 Frequency of using music streaming services in South Korea as of August
2022
Music streaming services usage frequency South Korea 2022

Share of respondents
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

Almost every day 37.1%

3-4 times a week 22.1%

1-2 times a week 19.1%

2-3 times a month 10.3%

Once a month 5.6%

Once every two or three months 3.1%

Once every four to twelve months 2.7%

13 Description: According to a survey conducted amongst South Korean music listeners in 2022, around 37 percent of respondents stated that they streamed music almost every day. Overall, over 78 percent of those surveyed listened to music on a weekly basis. Read
more
Note(s): South Korea; July 22 to August 26, 2022; 2,344 respondents; 10-69 years; people who use music streaming services
Source(s): Global Research; Korea Creative Content Agency
 Most frequently used music streaming or download services in South
Korea as of August 2022
Most frequently used music streaming or download services South Korea 2022

Share of respondents
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

YouTube (free) 58.8%

Melon 55%

Genie 22.9%

YouTube Music (paid) 17.8%

FLO 12.6%

Naver VIBE 11.5%

Bugs Music 11.5%

Kakao Music 9.4%

Spotify 6%

Apple Music 5.6%

Soribada 4.6%

Soundcloud 4.3%

MuOn Music 1.3%

Other 0.9%

14 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in 2022, around 59 percent of respondents stated that they used the international streaming giant YouTube to stream or download music contents. A similarly popular service, at around 55 percent, was
South Korean music streaming platform Melon. YouTube's paid music streaming service, YouTube Music, was used by around 18 percent of Korean respondents. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; July 22 to August 26, 2022; 2,667 respondents; 10-69 years; people who use music streaming or download services
Source(s): Global Research; Korea Creative Content Agency
 Most popular paid music streaming apps among people in their twenties
in South Korea as of July 2022
Popular paid music streaming apps among people in their 20s South Korea 2022

20s-BPI points*
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55

Melon 49

YouTube Music 43.8

Genie 22.8

FLO 12.4

Apple Music 12

Spotify 10.8

Soundcloud 9.7

Bugs 7.7

Naver Vibe 7

15 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in 2022, Melon was the most popular paid music streaming service among South Koreans in their twenties, with 49 brand power index (BPI) points. The second most popular music streaming site, YouTube
Music, was one of only two apps to gain points compared to the previous year. Spotify managed to attain a relatively high BPI score, despite having only launched in South Korea in early 2021. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; July 22 to 29, 2022; 1,000 respondents; 19-29 years old; *20s-BPI (20s Brand Power Index) = 0.1854*F + 0.7083*L + 0.1062*I F (Familiarity) means familiarity with the brands. L (Loyalty) means preference for the brands. I [...] Read more
Source(s): Univ Tomorrow
CHAPTER 03

Video streaming
 Distribution of online video content watched weekly by internet users in
South Korea as of the 3rd quarter of 2022, by type of content
Share of internet users watching online videos weekly in South Korea Q3 2022, by type

Share of internet users as consumers

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

Any kind of video 84.3%

Music videos 31.2%

Sports clips or highlight videos 25.7%

Influencer videos and vlogs 19.3%

Product reviews 16.6%

Gaming videos 16.3%

Comedy, memes or viral videos 16.2%

Livestreams 12.8%

Educational videos 10.8%

Tutorials/how-to videos 4%

17 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in the third quarter of 2022, around 31 percent of respondents stated that they watched music videos weekly. This was the most commonly watched type of online video content on a weekly basis, followed
by sports clips or highlights at around 26 percent. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; Q3 2022; 16-64 years; among internet users
Source(s): DataReportal; GWI; Meltwater; We Are Social
 Frequency of using Video-on-Demand (VoD) and video streaming services
in South Korea as of May 2021, by gender
Usage frequency of VoD and video streaming services South Korea 2021, by gender

Share of respondents

Male Female

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

44.44%
Several times a week
42.81%

30.27%
Every day
32.82%

13.98%
Only when a particular show or movie premieres
16.41%

10.22%
Only on the weekends
7.61%

1.09%
Never
0.35%

18 Description: According to a survey conducted by Rakuten Insight in May 2021 in South Korea on the frequency of using subscription Video-on-Demand and streaming services, roughly 44.44 percent of male respondents replied that they used such services several
times a week. This was also the most common frequency among female respondents, with 42.81 percent answering that way. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; May 13 to 30, 2021; 2,998 respondents; 16 years and older; people using streaming services
Source(s): Rakuten Insight
 Most popular over-the-top (OTT) video services in South Korea as of
February 2022, by number of users (in millions)
Popular OTT video services by number of users South Korea 2022

Number of users (in millions)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Netflix 8.52

Wavve 3.41

Tving 3.67

Coupang Play 2.39

Disney+ 1.2

Seezn 1.09

Watcha 0.78

19 Description: The most popular over-the-top (OTT) video service in South Korea as of February 2022 was Netflix, with over ten million users at that time. The popularity of online video services has become a global phenomenon, becoming such a point of interest that
even e-commerce businesses, such as Amazon or the South Korean Coupang launched their own video services. In line with that, the OTT video viewer penetration rate in South Korea has notably increased during the last few years. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; February 2022; paid subscription-based OTT services
Source(s): CEO Score; IGAWorks
 Devices to watch Video-on-Demand (VoD) and video streaming services on
in South Korea as of May 2021
Devices to watch VoD and video streaming services South Korea 2021

Share of respondents
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Smartphone 62.64%

Smart TV 40.63%

Laptop 32.22%

Normal TV attached to internet connected device (gaming console, laptop, etc..) 31.02%

Tablets 27.22%

Desktop computer 24.02%

Others 0.6%

20 Description: According to a survey conducted by Rakuten Insight in May 2021 among South Koreans on what device they used to access Video-on-Demand or video streaming services, roughly 62.6 percent of respondents answered to use their smartphone. Smart TVs,
which often come with some streaming services' apps already installed, were the second most popular device to use, with 40.63 respondents answering that way. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; May 13 to 30, 2021; 2,998 respondents; 16 years and older; people using video streaming services
Source(s): Rakuten Insight
 Preferred content on subscription video on demand (SVoD) services in
South Korea in 2020
Content preferred on SVoD services South Korea 2020

40%

34.5%
35%

30%
Share of respondents

24.8%
25%

20%
16.4%
15%

9.3% 8.9%
10%
5.2%
5%
0.8% 0.2%
0%
TV program (VOD/ Individual OTT operator's Foreign TV Movie Real-time TV Music Others
repeated watching) production and produced program program
broadcasting video (e.g. Netflix
content Originals)

21 Description: According to a survey conducted in 2020 on online video content preference among South Korean Subscription-Video-on-Demand (SVoD) users, 34.5 percent of respondent stated that they preferred to watch TV programs. Almost a quarter of
respondents answered to enjoy watching individual productions and broadcasting video content. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; 2020; 10,302 respondents; 6 years and older
Source(s): KISDI
 Average spending on over-the-top (OTT) video services per payment in
South Korea in 2020, by age group (in 1,000 South Korean won)
Average spending on OTT services in South Korea 2020, by age

Spending in thousand South Korean won

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

10 to 19 years old 8.51

20 to 29 years old 10.52

30 to 39 years old 11.16

40 to 49 years old 11.48

50 to 59 years old 11.83

60 years and older 11.43

22 Description: In 2020, South Koreans in their fifties spend around 11.83 thousand South Korean won on average per payment for over-the-top (OTT) video services. The average amount of payment for all age group from 20 years upwards was between 10,000 and
12,000 South Korean won. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; January 2019 to December 2020; 10 years and older
Source(s): Hana Financial Investment
CHAPTER 04

Streaming of other contents

 Most commonly used type of audio contents in South Korea as of July
2021
Most commonly used type of audio contents South Korea 2021

100%
91.3%
90%

80%

70%
Share of respondents

60%

50% 45.2%

40%

30% 26.8%
20.3%
20%
13.1%
10%

0%
Music Radio Podcast Audio book Audio lecture

24 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in July 2021, the most commonly used audio contents type in South Korea was music, with a respondent share of around 91.3 percent. This was followed by radio, which was listened to by around 45.2
percent of respondents. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; July 23 to 26, 2021; 526 respondents; 15-59 years; users of audio content
Source(s): Cosmetic Insight; Opensurvey
 Leading factors when choosing a podcast in South Korea in 2019
Leading factors choosing podcast South Korea 2019

Share of respondents
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 55%

Expertise of hosts 48.1%

Fun 44.1%

Interest in issue or topic 41.4%

Preferred hosts 41.2%

Educating content 22.9%

25 Description: This statistic presents the result of the survey about the leading factors when choosing a podcast in South Korea in 2019. That year, around 48.1 percent of surveyed stated the expertise of the hosts on the subject was one of the leading factors when
choosing a podcast. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; January 28 to 30, 2019; 345 podcast listeners*; 19-59 years; *Out of 1,000 total surveyed. Multiple answers were acceptable. Read more
Source(s): Embrain; Trendmonitor
 Leading South Korean streaming twitch channels as of November 2022, by
average viewer numbers
Leading South Korean twitch channels by average viewers 2022

Number of average viewers

0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000

LCK_Korea 69,065

woowakgood 15,945

Han Dong Suk 14,333

Wind moon hanryang 13,584

Aine 11,816

Ralo 11,314

Yang Dding 10,011

Lilpa 9,446

Syukaworld 9,044

zilioner 8,560

26 Description: As of November 2023, the Korean Twitch channel with the highest average viewer number was LCK_Korea with roughly 69.07 thousand viewers. LCK is the abbreviation for League of Legends Champions Korea, an eSports tournament of Riot Games'
MOBA game League of Legends. Depending on the current esports season viewer numbers on that channel can vary greatly. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; October 5 to November 4, 2022; streaming channels in Korean
Source(s): TwitchTracker
 Gamers who are interested in a live streaming console-less gaming service
subscription in South Korea in 2020
Interest in console-less game streaming services among gamers South Korea 2020

No 49% Yes 51%

27 Description: According to a survey conducted in South Korea in 2020, around half of respondents stated that they were interested in subscribing to a live streaming console-less gaming service, like Google Stadia. The survey was conducted among gamers who played
video games at least once a week. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; January 3 to 25, 2020; 500 respondents; 18 years and older; gamers who played video games at least once a week
Source(s): Limelight Networks
 Factors that would prevent gamers from subscribing to a live streaming
console-less gaming service in South Korea in 2021
Reasons against subscribing to game streaming services among gamers South Korea 2021

Privacy issues 11.1%

Content is too limited 22.8% High costs 39.4%

Performance issues 26.7%

28 Description: According to a survey conducted amongst gamers in South Korea in 2021, 39.4 percent of respondents stated that high prices would prevent them from subscribing to live streaming console-less gaming services like Google Stadia. A quarter of
respondents were mainly concerned with performance issues, while a further 22.8 percent were concerned that there would not be enough content to warrant the price. Read more
Note(s): South Korea; January 5 to January 12, 2021; 500 respondents; 18 years and older; gamers who played video games at least once a week
Source(s): Limelight Networks
 Sources

CEO Score Univ Tomorrow

Cosmetic Insight We Are Social
DataReportal
Embrain
Global Research
GWI
Hana Financial Investment
IGAWorks
KISDI
KOFIC
Korea Creative Content Agency
Korean Internet & Security Agency
Limelight Networks
Market Metrix
Meltwater
Ministry of Science and ICT (South Korea)
NIA
Opensurvey
Rakuten Insight
Statista Digital Market Insights
Trendmonitor
TwitchTracker

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