White Paper on Korean Games: 2013 Guide to Korean Games Industry and Culture

Key insights

6 takeaways

01
The domestic game market grew to 9.752 trillion won in 2012, representing a 10.8% increase over the 8.804 trillion won recorded in 2011.See it on page 5
02
Mobile game revenue reached 800.9 billion won in 2012, marking an 89.1% increase compared to the previous year.See it on page 6
03
Total game industry exports reached USD 2.6 billion in 2012, with online games contributing USD 2.4 billion to that total.See it on page 8
04
China was the largest export market for Korean games in 2012, accounting for 38.6% of total export revenue.See it on page 11
05
The total number of workers in the game industry was 95,051 in 2012, with 52,466 employed in production and distribution companies.See it on page 12
06
A survey of 1,000 users found that 57.5% of respondents believe mobile games will lead the future domestic game market.See it on page 31

Summary

The 2013 White Paper on Korean Games provides an overview of the South Korean game industry and culture. The document details market performance, export and import statistics, industry workforce data, and user behavior trends based on a survey of 1,000 participants aged 9 to 49 conducted in March 2013.

The domestic game market reached 9.752 trillion won in 2012, an increase of 10.8% from 2011. Online games accounted for 69.6% of this market, while mobile games grew by 89.1% to 800.9 billion won. Overseas exports for the industry totaled USD 2.6 billion in 2012, with online games representing 91.4% of that total. China remained the largest export destination, accounting for 38.6% of exports.

Industry employment reached 95,051 workers in 2012, with 52,466 individuals employed in production and distribution. User survey results indicate that 34.7% of respondents play games for fun, and 38.7% identify online games as their most commonly used platform. Looking forward, 57.5% of survey respondents identified mobile games as the platform expected to lead the future domestic market.