Part of it is normal market forces. South Korea heavily subsidizes the Culture industry. But Gangnam Style becoming a worldwide hit wasn't an accident.
In 1990, the Korean National Assembly granted a broadcasting license to the regional
Seoul Broadcasting System (SBS), becoming the first private television station since the forced nationalization of private broadcasters in 1980.
[26] In December 1991, the National Assembly passed the Cable Television Act which directed the
Ministry of Information to provide permits to twenty prospective cable television program providers.
[26] The providers were selected in August 1993, and cable television services began in March, 1995.
[26] With the liberalization of the South Korean television market, a greater number of Korean programs started to be exported abroad.
[32] These media exports were first exported to China, after the two countries formally established diplomatic relations in 1992.
[33]
The 1997 Asian financial crisis led broadcasters throughout East Asia to seek cheaper programs as an alternative to the expensive, but popular broadcasts from Japan.
[28] In 2000, K-dramas were a quarter of the price of Japanese television programs and a tenth of the price of Hong Kong television programs.
[32] K-dramas first entered the Taiwanese market during the early 1990s, but the shift to Korean television programming following the financial crisis and the successful airing of
Fireworks (2000) and
Autumn in My Heart (2000) marked the start of the Korean Wave in the country.
[38]
The 2003 historical K-drama
Jewel in the Palace has been credited for having the greatest impact on the popularity of Korean television programs in Chinese-speaking countries, including Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and China.
[39] In May 2005, the show's final episode became the highest-rated television episode in Hong Kong history at more than 40 percent.
[37] In the years following its release, the program was exported to over 80 countries around the world.
[31]: 11 At the same time, the 2003–2004 airing of the romance K-drama
Winter Sonata in Japan marked the entrance of the Korean Wave to Japan.
[40]
In the Indian state of
Manipur, Hindi-language movies and television channels were banned in 2000 by
insurgents, leading broadcasters to use Korean programming as substitutes.
[46] Korean dramas and films were also commonly smuggled into the region in the form of CDs and DVDs.
[47]
By the late 2000s, K-dramas became part of the daily programming of local television channels across East Asia
[48] and in China, Korean programs made up more than all other foreign programming combined.
[45]: 2 During the period between 1997 and 2007, television exports from South Korea would increase from $8.3 million to $151 million, mostly to other Asian markets.
[49]
The mid-2000s marked the expansion of the Korean Wave outside of East Asia into other parts of Asia, while the mid-2010s marked the Korean Wave's expansion outside of Asia into Europe, the Americas, and Africa.
[74]: 4
[75] During this period, social media and platforms like
YouTube,
Netflix, and
Webtoon played a key role in the dissemination of South Korean popular culture.
[76][77]
In the United States, the Korean Wave spread outwards from
Korean-American communities, most notably in
New York City and
Los Angeles.
[80]
