By 2008, Korea’s 114 Internet service providers (ISPs) were connecting at six Internet
exchanges (IX) providing a total of 1,450 Gbps capacity to South Korean Internet
users. 8 However, three South Korean ISPs (KT, formerly known as Korea Telecom,
Hanaro Telecom, and Korea Thrunet) control nearly 85 percent of the broadband market. The largest broadband supplier, KorNet, provides about half the ADSL lines in the
country, making it the largest ADSL supplier in the world. 9
Dedicated blog service providers, video sites, and online news sites saw the biggest
growth in 2008. 10 Over 50 percent of Korean Internet users have created usergenerated content (UGC), with over 30 percent producing content at least once a
month. 11 Most UGC is centered around Web portals and is text based, though over
50 percent is in video and flash-generated formats. 12 The government has acknowledged that UGC has powered social and political transformation: whereas political dialogue tends to be limited to that between politicians and major media, high-speed
Internet infrastructure and social media tools have allowed users anywhere to engage
in real-time dialogue. 13 Of the 67 percent of Korean Internet users who read news
online, almost 90 percent rely on news services provided by portals, followed by 60
percent viewership of Web sites of print publications. 14
Thus, it is not surprising that citizens of South Korea, one of the world’s most networked countries, have come to influence and in some cases transform the political
and social fabric through their online participation. In April 2008, as part of trade
negotiations with the United States, President Lee Myung-bak’s administration agreed
to resume imports of American beef after a five-year ban. 15 On April 29, 2008, a television program called PD Notebook on the network MBC claimed that ‘‘Koreans are 94
percent more likely to contract a human form of mad cow disease,’’ sparking a flood
of online debate, especially on the Agora forum of Korea’s second-largest portal,
Daum (which saw a daily page-view count spike from 40 million to 200 million). 16 A
group called the People’s Association for Measures against Mad Cow Disease, led by
organizations such as the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and the Korean
Teachers’ and Educational Workers’ Union, led about 100 days of protests and
demanded the resignation of the Lee Myung-bak administration. 17 These protests
were coupled with online action, as protesters uploaded images to the Internet, sent
messages on protest meet-ups and warnings on arrests via text messaging, and engaged
in online debate. 18 Ultimately, his entire cabinet resigned and Lee was forced to call for
a ‘‘new beginning’’ for his government. 19
The power of the Korean cyberspace was also chillingly demonstrated in the suicides
of at least four celebrities in 2007 and 2008. 20 Korea’s online community was blamed
for spreading malicious rumors and attacks on actress Choi Jin Sil’s character that were
alleged to have driven her to commit suicide in October 2008. 21 In hundreds of thousands of posts, Internet users circulated rumors that Choi was a loan shark who had
pressured the actor Ahn Jae Hwan to repay a USD 2 million loan, and ultimately kill
South Korea
505
exchanges (IX) providing a total of 1,450 Gbps capacity to South Korean Internet
users. 8 However, three South Korean ISPs (KT, formerly known as Korea Telecom,
Hanaro Telecom, and Korea Thrunet) control nearly 85 percent of the broadband market. The largest broadband supplier, KorNet, provides about half the ADSL lines in the
country, making it the largest ADSL supplier in the world. 9
Dedicated blog service providers, video sites, and online news sites saw the biggest
growth in 2008. 10 Over 50 percent of Korean Internet users have created usergenerated content (UGC), with over 30 percent producing content at least once a
month. 11 Most UGC is centered around Web portals and is text based, though over
50 percent is in video and flash-generated formats. 12 The government has acknowledged that UGC has powered social and political transformation: whereas political dialogue tends to be limited to that between politicians and major media, high-speed
Internet infrastructure and social media tools have allowed users anywhere to engage
in real-time dialogue. 13 Of the 67 percent of Korean Internet users who read news
online, almost 90 percent rely on news services provided by portals, followed by 60
percent viewership of Web sites of print publications. 14
Thus, it is not surprising that citizens of South Korea, one of the world’s most networked countries, have come to influence and in some cases transform the political
and social fabric through their online participation. In April 2008, as part of trade
negotiations with the United States, President Lee Myung-bak’s administration agreed
to resume imports of American beef after a five-year ban. 15 On April 29, 2008, a television program called PD Notebook on the network MBC claimed that ‘‘Koreans are 94
percent more likely to contract a human form of mad cow disease,’’ sparking a flood
of online debate, especially on the Agora forum of Korea’s second-largest portal,
Daum (which saw a daily page-view count spike from 40 million to 200 million). 16 A
group called the People’s Association for Measures against Mad Cow Disease, led by
organizations such as the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and the Korean
Teachers’ and Educational Workers’ Union, led about 100 days of protests and
demanded the resignation of the Lee Myung-bak administration. 17 These protests
were coupled with online action, as protesters uploaded images to the Internet, sent
messages on protest meet-ups and warnings on arrests via text messaging, and engaged
in online debate. 18 Ultimately, his entire cabinet resigned and Lee was forced to call for
a ‘‘new beginning’’ for his government. 19
The power of the Korean cyberspace was also chillingly demonstrated in the suicides
of at least four celebrities in 2007 and 2008. 20 Korea’s online community was blamed
for spreading malicious rumors and attacks on actress Choi Jin Sil’s character that were
alleged to have driven her to commit suicide in October 2008. 21 In hundreds of thousands of posts, Internet users circulated rumors that Choi was a loan shark who had
pressured the actor Ahn Jae Hwan to repay a USD 2 million loan, and ultimately kill
South Korea
505