Seoul, Beijing agree to promote cooperation in online gaming industry

JEJU ISLAND, South Korea, Dec. 24 (Yonhap) -- Seoul and Beijing agreed on
Wednesday to strengthen cooperation in developing technology and promoting the
online gaming market.
South Korean Culture Minister Yu In-chon and his Chinese counterpart, Cai Wu,
inked a memorandum of understanding at the bilateral meeting, committing to
exchanging information on related laws and policies, fostering joint research
between their countries' gaming companies and battling against Internet game
addiction.
Ministers of culture from South Korea, China and Japan gathered on this southern
island for a three-day meeting from Wednesday to discuss exchanges and
cooperation. Bilateral meetings were held before the official conference, to be
held on Thursday.
"We agreed that cooperation in the online game business will create synergy and
is necessary to expand its global market," said Yu at the talks.
According to a Chinese software think tank, China's online market grew 56 percent
this year from last year, recording a revenue of 20 billion yuan (US$3 billion).
South Korean online games such as "Audition" and "Dungeon and Fighters" attained
a 30 percent market share in China last year.
Internet-based games are popular in South Korea and China, but weak in the global
market, where video games account for over 80 percent.
brk@yna.co.kr
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