earticle

영어

This article provides a comparative analysis of the webtoon sectors in South Korea and China, examines webtoon’s definition and the processes involved in the webtoon industry development in both countries, and identifies the effects of macroenvironmental factors on the industry in each country. The political, economic, social, and technological factors in the two nations are explored in detail. This paper explores the contrasting development of the webtoon industry in Korea and China as influenced by distinct macroenvironments. Moreover, the success factors of the webtoon industry in both countries are analyzed. In terms of the political environment, both the Korean and Chinese governments recognize the content industry as a future growth engine. In terms of the economic environment, Korea is creating economic benefits through intellectual property utilization or added value through one-source multi-uses based on webtoons in China and has high expectations for future growth potential. In terms of the social environment, the number of subscribers interested in webtoons in both countries has increased. In terms of the technical environment, both Korea and China, as advanced information technology countries, have high-quality technical skills related to webtoons, and the webtoon environment has been created through the popularization of smartphones. The government should focus on supporting webtoon professionals, as talent is the foundation of self-sustaining competitiveness. Only when self-sustaining competitiveness is strong can the webtoon industry continue to grow. Strict regulations on webtoon content can limit the development of webtoons by hindering their free-spirited characteristics. Therefore, it is necessary to create an environment in which creative and diverse webtoon content can be created by easing regulations on webtoons.