The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
  • Login
  • Register
  • Login
  • Register
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
  • 1

    Korean Lunar New Year vs. Chinese Lunar New Year

  • 3

    Garbage collector mistakes sex doll for corpse

  • 5

    Cute canine film 'My Heart Puppy' reunites Yoo Yeon-seok, Cha Tae-hyun

  • 7

    Hybe acquires 56.1 percent stake in AI sound startup Supertone

  • 9

    Netflix announces password sharing crackdown in Korea

  • 11

    Korea seeks measures to better protect foreign workers

  • 13

    South Korea, US to expand size and content of joint military drills

  • 15

    Popular travel YouTuber recalls painful memories of being bullied at school

  • 17

    Cyber University of Korea offers online Korean language programs for foreigners

  • 19

    Holy Moly concert series brings 4 punk bands to Haebangchon

  • 2

    INTERVIEWProduction company AStory expects great success with 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' franchise

  • 4

    TWICE becomes first K-pop group to win Billboard Women in Music award

  • 6

    Free subway rides for elderly emerge as headache for Seoul mayor

  • 8

    Korea ranks 31st in international corruption perception index in 2022

  • 10

    US bill introduced to honor Korean War hero

  • 12

    Retailers return to Myeong-dong as more foreign tourists visit

  • 14

    Samsung refuses to cut chip output despite plunging profits

  • 16

    Samsung unveils new Galaxy S23 smartphone

  • 18

    4 South Korean activists arrested for executing orders from Pyongyang

  • 20

    Is non-consensual sex not rape?

Close scrollclosebutton

Close for 24 hours

Open
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
Thu, February 2, 2023 | 20:47
Cyber pen pal becomes wife
Posted : 2013-10-03 16:24
Updated : 2013-10-03 16:24
Print PreviewPrint Preview
Font Size UpFont Size Up
Font Size DownFont Size Down
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • kakaolink
  • whatsapp
  • reddit
  • mailto
  • link
Hi PenPal founder Choi Sang-chul, right, poses with his wife Yuki Tanaka at their home in Daejeon. / Courtesy of Hi PenPal
Hi PenPal founder Choi Sang-chul, right, poses with his wife Yuki Tanaka at their home in Daejeon. / Courtesy of Hi PenPal
By Kim Yoo-chul

For many, a pen pal is just a thing of the past.

Nowadays, it's hard to find people who regularly write to each other through postal mail. Most people make and build relationship by using various social media.

One Korean man decided to transform the traditional pen pal to the cyber world by opening a free international pen pal website.

"I believed online friendship via pen pals could become a real one. As a pen pal has come in all ages and cultures, it is still an effective communication tool to learn something and to form real friendships on a stable and steady base," said Choi Sang-chul, founder of Hi PenPal, a free international pen pal website, in a telephone interview, Thursday.

Once registered, a member can check other members' personal profile, picture and other details and ask someone to become his or her cyber pen pal.

"I just wanted to connect a sense of analog to the Internet," he said.

Due to health problems, Choi had to quit high school, which made him feel lonely and became a pen pal with a boy in the United Kingdom.

"After quitting high school, there was nothing I could do due to health problems. At that time, I was desperate to communicate with people who understand how I feel," said the 36-year-old founder.


After having a couple of good friends online, Choi opened his own pen pal site in 2006 where he met his wife Yuki Tanaka who manages the site together with Choi at his home in the provincial city of Daejeon.

Choi's wife is Japanese. Tanaka was his pal on the website. She registered to the site in 2009 and came to Korea after she was fascinated by Korean dramas.

At Sogang University in Seoul, Tanaka completed a Korean language program. Choi proposed to her on the last day of her Korean course and she accepted it.

"Some 270,000 people are registered and the site is getting popular in the United States, Europe as well as in Asia. The site offers 10 languages," he said.

Choi is well aware of "unethical issues" in online dating sites.

"I am monitoring the site and filtering on a real time basis. As it's required to put mobile phone numbers for registration, I directly report to cyber police if issues come out," according to the founder.

Amid the explosive growth for mobile devices, Hi PenPal is enthusiastic about the next phase of its growth as the founder is developing solutions and systems that will be activated on tablets.

"Search giant Google is providing advertizing services and half of the profit is coming from mobile devices.


Emailyckim@koreatimes.co.kr Article ListMore articles by this reporter
 
Top 10 Stories
1Garbage collector mistakes sex doll for corpse Garbage collector mistakes sex doll for corpse
2Free subway rides for elderly emerge as headache for Seoul mayor Free subway rides for elderly emerge as headache for Seoul mayor
3Korea seeks measures to better protect foreign workers Korea seeks measures to better protect foreign workers
4Retailers return to Myeong-dong as more foreign tourists visit Retailers return to Myeong-dong as more foreign tourists visit
5Samsung unveils new Galaxy S23 smartphone Samsung unveils new Galaxy S23 smartphone
64 South Korean activists arrested for executing orders from Pyongyang 4 South Korean activists arrested for executing orders from Pyongyang
7Is non-consensual sex not rape? Is non-consensual sex not rape?
8President pledges support for Korean chipmakers to overcome crisis President pledges support for Korean chipmakers to overcome crisis
9Seoul city council under fire for sexual conduct guidelines for teachers Seoul city council under fire for sexual conduct guidelines for teachers
10Income gap widening among workers Income gap widening among workers
Top 5 Entertainment News
1[INTERVIEW] Production company AStory expects great success with 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' franchise INTERVIEWProduction company AStory expects great success with 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' franchise
2TWICE becomes first K-pop group to win Billboard Women in Music award TWICE becomes first K-pop group to win Billboard Women in Music award
3Cute canine film 'My Heart Puppy' reunites Yoo Yeon-seok, Cha Tae-hyun Cute canine film 'My Heart Puppy' reunites Yoo Yeon-seok, Cha Tae-hyun
4AmorePacific Museum of Art brings Joseon-era folding screens to center stage AmorePacific Museum of Art brings Joseon-era folding screens to center stage
5$120,000 banana, praying Hitler: Infamous art world prankster Maurizio Cattelan's first Seoul outing $120,000 banana, praying Hitler: Infamous art world prankster Maurizio Cattelan's first Seoul outing
DARKROOM
  • Nepal plane crash

    Nepal plane crash

  • Brazil capital uprising

    Brazil capital uprising

  • Happy New Year 2023

    Happy New Year 2023

  • World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

    World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

  • World Cup 2022 France vs Morocco

    World Cup 2022 France vs Morocco

CEO & Publisher : Oh Young-jin
Digital News Email : webmaster@koreatimes.co.kr
Tel : 02-724-2114
Online newspaper registration No : 서울,아52844
Date of registration : 2020.02.05
Masthead : The Korea Times
Copyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.
  • About Us
  • Introduction
  • History
  • Contact Us
  • Products & Services
  • Subscribe
  • E-paper
  • RSS Service
  • Content Sales
  • Site Map
  • Policy
  • Code of Ethics
  • Ombudsman
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Copyright Policy
  • Family Site
  • Hankook Ilbo
  • Dongwha Group