South Korean media company Next Entertainment World (NEW) subsidiary NEW ID has launched ‘BINGE Korea,’ a game-changing Fast Advertising-Supported Television (FAST) platform that signifies a significant shift in the consumption of Korean content within the United States.
With a strong foothold as a premier provider of curated non-English and non-Spanish language FAST channels in the U.S., NEW ID is capitalizing on its FAST experience to introduce the first dedicated FAST service for Korean content.
Accessible across a variety of platforms such as Samsung, LG Smart TVs, and Amazon Fire TV, ‘BINGE Korea’ plans to expand its reach to Roku, iOS, and Android TV, ensuring broader accessibility and appeal to a larger audience.
Building on its extensive FAST expertise, NEW ID’s ‘BINGE Korea’ is set to launch with an impressive 36 channels, combining curated selections like “NEW KFOOD” with Single-IP channels centered around specific shows such as “My Unfortunate Boyfriend” and children’s programming like “Robocar POLI.”
According to Variety, the company envisions a total of 100 FAST channels within the platform’s first year of operation.
The timing is impeccable for the introduction of a Korean content-focused FAST service. According to a study by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, 43% of American streamers engaged with Korean-made content in 2022, positioning it just behind domestic productions in popularity.
With the Korean content market experiencing significant growth and attracting substantial investments, including Netflix’s $2.5 billion commitment over the next four years, ‘BINGE Korea’ seeks to cater to the increasing global demand for Korean entertainment.
CEO of NEW ID, June Park, emphasized the evolution in K-content consumption patterns, noting that ‘BINGE Korea’ consolidates the burgeoning interest in Korean content onto a single platform, marking a transformative shift from channel-based distribution to a comprehensive platform-based approach.
