Koreans are one of the highest viewers watching YouTube via smartphones, according to an official from YouTube on Tuesday in a press briefing in Seoul.
According to the video-sharing website firm, many Koreans are viewing Youtube via their smartphones and the figure is one of the highest among other nations.
Hours spent on viewing YouTube among local users also increased 110 percent in the first quarter of this year, from the same period of last year. Among them, 70 percent occurred via mobile phones.
Further, the number of video uploads increased 90 percent during the same period. This is due to new types of webcasts such as Mukbang has been a hit in the nation. Mukbang is a type of performance in which someone eats large quantities of food, while interacting with their audience, for apparent entertainment value. Video similar to Mukbang has been gone viral in the nation.
YouTube Contents & Operations Director Gautam Anand said, “Korea is a market with huge potential and opportunities. It is interesting to see Korean contents including K-pop expanding into global markets.”
Seo Hwang-wook, executive responsible for YouTube business partnership in South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan said, “The dramatic growth of YouTube’ creators are making strong business trend which can shift the paradigm of content market.”
“Creators are expected to grow in more diverse areas including music, game, beauty, and cooking,” he added.
YouTube is the world’s largest video-sharing website launched in 2005. It already reached 1 billion visitors in 2013.
By Lee Kyung-ho
