Viewership used to be the pivotal factor in evaluating a Korean drama, and productions with high ratings were exported to reach a global audience.
But the game has changed ― Korean TV series with fewer viewers can still make an international splash thanks to streaming platforms such as Netflix. Even industry insiders say that "a low viewership has not pushed the K-drama industry over the edge."
A plethora of K-dramas ― including actor Lee Min-ho's romantic fantasy "The King: Eternal Monarch" (2020) and Kim Soo-hyun's rom-com "It's Okay to Not Be Okay" (2020) ― have conquered the most-watched TV show charts in various countries on Netflix, and others have gained popularity after being exported.
According to the Korea Creative Content Agency's (KOCCA) latest data, drama exports earned $214 million in 2018, a 19.2 percent jump from 2017.
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The Korea Times