The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) announced on the 17th that next year’s budget is set at 609.3 billion won, reflecting a 3.04% increase from this year’s 591.3 billion won. The budget allocation by genre includes 98 billion won for broadcasting and video, 63.2 billion won for games, 28.7 billion won for animation, 25 billion won for music, 21 billion won for comics and webtoons, 15.5 billion won for new technology integration, 8.3 billion won for characters, 7.8 billion won for fashion, and 3.6 billion won for storytelling.
Notably, the genre of comics and webtoons stands out with an increase of 8.4 billion won, including new projects like global webtoon IP production support. Animation and games also see budget increases of 2.6 billion won and 2 billion won, respectively, broadening the scope of support in planning, production, and distribution.
The functional budget includes 104.4 billion won for research and development (R&D), 75.1 billion won for export support, 51 billion won for regional content support, 33.4 billion won for talent development, 21.4 billion won for business growth, and 4.2 billion won for investment. The proportion for export support grew with an increased allocation of 14.9 billion won. R&D and regional content support also increased by 6 billion won and 5.8 billion won, respectively.
To ensure effective execution, KOCCA will hold a support project briefing at the Grand Ballroom of Seoul Dragon City in Yongsan-gu, guiding content industry stakeholders to clearly understand content policies and actively participate in projects. They will also present the focus and direction for next year.
Yu Hyun-seok, the acting president of KOCCA, mentioned that a recent Korea Eximbank survey confirmed that the content industry is the only sector with an improved export outlook. He affirmed the agency’s commitment to fully supporting K-content as a growth engine for the Korean economy next year.