By Cho Mu-hyun
Nexon, Korea’s largest game publisher and developer, said Friday that it will cut the royalties it receives from PC bangs, or Internet cafes, for running its games by half to help out its partners.
PC bangs in Korea pay a license fee per time played by customers of games to the publishers.
Nexon said 1,000 PC bangs partnered with the company will pay half the regular amount until August.
“Nexon is always committed to helping out PC bangs that are a crucial part of the Korean game industry,” said company spokesman Choi Kwang. “We will continue to support them for the continuous and healthy growth of the market.”
The company said it will also provide other financial support for Internet cafes such as maintenance and supplying equipment. It will also help them run amateur tournaments for their titles.
Last year, 2,200 PC bangs received the same benefit.
Nexon said that the support provided last year has helped it increase “communication and understanding” with its partners.
PC bangs are suffering from a decline in revenue as more and more affordable computers and fast Internet access becomes available at home.
Game publishers such as Nexon and NCsoft have also received criticism in the past for collecting license fees that PC bang owners consider exorbitant.
Despite the decline from its heyday in the 1990s, Internet cafes nevertheless still exert power over game makers in being the measurement of the popularity of an offering.
It is also an important entry for gamers who wish to turn professional, as well as the league itself as a place to kick off a tournament.