Foreign ministry hit for neglecting Korean game firms in China

By Jun Ji-hye

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other government agencies are facing growing criticism for not helping Korean game companies, which have been banned by the Chinese government from selling games in the mainland for the past two years, according to industry officials Thursday.

The officials said that game companies' hardships have deepened with the government's indifference since China, the world's largest game market, suspended issuing service permits for Korean games in March 2017 as part of the country's protest of Korea's deployment of a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system.

“The gap between Korean and Chinese games has broadened while the government has done almost nothing for almost three years,” an official from one of the major game companies said on condition of anonymity. “I doubt whether Korean games will be competitive in China even after the Chinese government resumes issuing permits for Korean games.”

The Chinese government has reopened its gaming market recently to foreign games but kept the doors closed to Korean companies.

In April, Beijing issued service permits for 30 foreign titles, but no Korean games were included in the list.

According to the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA), 60.5 percent of overseas sales of Korean game companies was generated from exports to China in 2017, which means export barriers in that country have had a huge impact on the firms' profits.

“Korean game companies have had a rough time with difficulties in the Chinese market,” another game company official said. “Firms have attempted to find alternative markets such as Japan, but it is not easy to accomplish meaningful results.”

Wi Jong-hyun, a professor at Chung-Ang University and head of the Korea Game Society, also criticized the foreign ministry, saying it should regret its “ignorance and apathy” on the issue.

“The foreign ministry has never come up with plausible explanations although game companies have claimed numerous times that they have suffered in China and not been protected by the government,” he said during a policy forum held at the National Assembly.

For his part, Culture Minister Park Yang-woo, who took office in April, has given belated efforts to consult the Chinese government on the issue.

On Aug. 30, he brought up the issue during a trilateral meeting between culture ministers of Korea, China and Japan.

“Minister Park has paid attention to the game industry and been carrying out various activities related to China's service permits,” said Kim Hyun-hwan, a director of the culture ministry. “We have also consulted with high-level officials at the foreign ministry and other government offices. We will enhance such activities further.”