Entertainment

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  Sing-along 'Noraebang' feature added to S. Korea's favorite navigation app SEOUL -- People who cannot visit Noraebang, the Korean version of Karaoke rooms, due to concerns over a new coronavirus epidemic can now sing along their favorite songs using T Map, a popular navigation app operated by South Korea's mobile carrier SK Telecom. Keumyoung, a digital audio system company that makes karaoke machines, said on Tuesday that its Noraebang feature was added to T Map using text-to-speech (TTS) technology that converts digital content including websites, eb 2020-07-07
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  Hara's ex-boyfriend handcuffed in court with one-year prison sentence SEOUL -- The ex-boyfriend of Goo Hara, a former girl band KARA member who committed suicide after being dogged by hate comments and malicious rumors, was put under court custody after an appeals court handed down a jail sentence, overturning a lower court's decision. In August 2019, a district court in Seoul sentenced Hara's former boyfriend, Choi Jong-bum, to 18 months in prison with a stay of execution for three years. Choi was accused of assaulting and injuring Hara in 2020-07-02
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  [INTERVIEW] Culture Minister promises to nurture new model of culture in COVID-19 non-contact era SEOUL -- As offline performances remained suspended due to a prolonged coronavirus pandemic, South Korea recommends a new cultural model that can strategically cope with the era of non-contact by nurturing sectors including online concerts, OTT video-on-demand services and e-sports. "We must counteract against the spread of the non-contact and online trend. The key point of this movement is 'diverse top-quality content'. South Korea has the advantage of outstanding tech 2020-07-02
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  OST of TV drama starring Park Bo-gum to be released thru Tencent Music SEOUL -- The original soundtrack of "The Moment," a tvN cable TV drama starring Park Bo-gum, will be released through Tencent Music, a company that develops music streaming services for the Chinese market. The drama to be released in the second half of this year follows the lives of young people in the world of modeling. Pan Entertainment, a major drama production company in South Korea, said it has signed a contract to supply and distribute the drama's OST through T 2020-07-02
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  SK C&C works on blueprint for smart marketplace using AI and blockchain SEOUL -- SK C&C, the information technology wing of South Korean conglomerate SK Group, has embarked on the creation of a blueprint for a smart marketplace that uses new technologies to precisely track, manage products and reduce distribution costs. Just like smart farms or smart factories that utilize artificial intelligence, big data, blockchain and cloud technologies to automate processes and reduce time and costs, smart marketplace technology can turn a crammed old marketp 2020-06-30
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  Popular S. Korean webtoon to be recreated as Netflix drama series SEOUL -- "D.P Dog's Day," a South Korean webtoon written and drawn by Kim Botong, will be recreated as a drama series to be distributed by Netflix, the world's most popular over-the-top video-on-demand service, which has released drama adaptations of South Korean webcomics series such as "Kingdom" that garnered explosive popularity worldwide. Web cartoons, widely known as webtoons or webcomics, are digital comic books created to fit into web or mobile pla 2020-06-30
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  [INTERVIEW] Media company head urges active promotion of K-content abroad SEOUL -- A coronavirus pandemic has brought up epochal changes in the pattern of consumption, moving up the era of consuming content on a variety of devices anytime and anywhere. The media market is no exception as more people use digital and virtual reality platforms to interact online with others. "The travel industry is changing to indirect experience rather than direct experience. The same goes for content. Korean content should go further to the substantial global market 2020-06-25
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  ​S. Korean zombie film 'Peninsula' to hit cinemas in IMAX format SEOUL -- "Peninsula," a sequel to the 2016 zombie action horror film "Train to Busan," directed by Yeon Sang-ho, will hit black screens next month in IMAX, the special cinema projection standard that provides a wider image width. NEW, the film's distributor, said Thursday that the zombie horror film will be released in the format of both IMAX and normal cinema on July 15. IMAX films are screened at special theaters with wider screens. Train to Busan, 2020-06-25
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  Singer-actress IU updates fans on war against cyberbulling SEOUL -- IU, a singer-actress who showed her strong personality in dealing with cyberbullying, has updated fans with her legal action against those who stood trial for launching persistent online attacks involving malicious online posts or comments. Unlike other docile celebrities, IU has spearheaded a legal campaign against cyberbullies by taking intransigent legal action against cyberbullying. Coordinated attacks have brutally harassed top stars including Choi Jin-ri, known by h 2020-06-25
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  BTS founder emphasizes voluntary and responsible attitude in K-pop idol audition show SEOUL --Bang Si-hyuk, the founder of BTS, promised to put his priority on a voluntary and responsible attitude when 23 candidates compete in I-LAND, a survival K-pop idol music show to pick next-generation K-pop artists. "I will serve to help participants choose and grow on their own, not to be immersed in competition and carry out a set mission," Bang said in an online production press conference on I-LAND. As the general producer of I-Land, Bang will work with Woo Ji-ho, 2020-06-24
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  Studio Dragon embarks on production of American remake of K-drama 'Hotel Del Luna' SEOUL -- Studio Dragon, a major drama production company in South Korea, and Skydance Media, an American production company, have jointly embarked on the production of the English remake of "Hotel Del Luna," a 2019 hit K-drama featuring singer-actress IU. Studio Dragon said in a statement on Wednesday that Alison Schapker, an American television writer and producer well-known for her works such as Altered Carbon and espionage series "Alias," will produce the Am 2020-06-24
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  BTS to release series of graphic books depicting hit songs' lyrics SEOUL -- K-pop band BTS will release a graphic book series that depicts lyrics of the seven-member band through a graphic-novel like storytelling. Big Hit Entertainment, the agency of BTS, said in a statement on Tuesday that the K-pop sensation will release "A Supplementary Story: You Never Walk Alone," a graphic book series, including six books -- "Save ME," ' House Of Cards," "RUN" and "Butterfly". The sixth book of the graphic ly 2020-06-23
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  Culture minister praises BTS for providing a way forward to K-pop SEOUL -- South Korea's culture minister praised the agency of BTS for providing a way forward to K-pop with a paid online concert, urging other entertainment agencies to follow suit and create "differentiated and high-quality" digital works using advanced technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality. "I pay respect," Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Park Yang-woo told a meeting of entertainment company officials and music industry 2020-06-19
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  BTS agency opens audition for Japanese female trainees SEOUL -- Big Hit Entertainment, the agency of K-pop sensation BTS, has opened an audition for Japanese female trainees who wish to become K-pop idols. The creator of BTS said through its official Japanese Twitter account this week that the company is looking for Japanese female trainees who were born in 2001 or after and can sing and dance. Big Hit said trainees from Japan are welcome regardless of levels of experience. Through numerous occasions, Big Hit had carried out auditi 2020-06-19
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  Over 90 percent OTT service users watch video content via smartphone: survey SEOUL -- More than 90 percent of over-the-top video-on-demand service subscribers used smartphones to watch video content in South Korea led by Netflix, the world's most popular OTT service, a survey showed. Over-the-top (OTT) services provide video content such as TV dramas, films and live broadcasts of sports games via connected devices such as smartphones, computers and smart TVS. Netflix has the largest number of 6.37 million paid subscribers in South Korea. According to 2020-06-18
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  ​S. Korea's OTT service strives to maintain user pool in competition with Netflix SEOUL -- Wavve, an over-the-top video-on-demand service in South Korea, fell short of initial expectations, failing to secure a stable pool of users despite efforts to check Netflix, the world's most popular online and mobile video content service which has gained a strong base of subscribers in South Korea with more than 50 million smartphone users. Wavve was created by a joint force of South Korean over-the-top (OTT) service operators to challenge Netflix. SK Telecom (SKT), th 2020-06-17
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  Actor Park Bo-gum to release new song in August to commemorate debut SEOUL -- Actor Park Bo-gum will release a song written and composed by South Korea's singer-songwriter Sam Kim in August as the last present for fans who would miss the K-drama star during his mandatory military service. He has applied for the keyboard part of the Navy's military music and honor guard. Blossom Entertainment, the 27-year-old's agency, said in a statement on Tuesday that the actor would release "All My Love" on August 10, the day which Park too 2020-06-16
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  BLACKPINK collaborates with AR avatar service to offer interactive 3D characters SEOUL -- K-pop girl band BLACKPINK has collaborated with ZEPETO, a South Korean 3D avatar creator platform service, to offer fans with characterized models of band members. Naver Z, the operator of ZEPETO, said in a statement on Tuesday that the company has released 3D models of BLACKPINK members through a 3D character creation studio app. Users can take selfies with BLACKPINK members using augmented reality (AR) technology. ZEPETO is a smartphone app that allows users to create 2020-06-16
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  ​Samsung to release BTS-themed special edition smartphone next month SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics will release a BTS-themed special edition smartphone adorned with the logo and iconic color of the K-pop sensation in July. The South Korean smartphone maker said in a statement on Monday that "Galaxy S20+ BTS Edition" will hit the shelves in some 50 countries including South Korea, the United States and Europe on July 9. ARMY, the international fan club of BTS, celebrates on July 9 the day when the global fandom gained its name in 2013. The 2020-06-15
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  BTS online concert opens new way for global concert and performance industry SEOUL -- BTS proved its brand power as one of the world's top-grossing touring groups with a successful paid online concert that attracted more than 700,000 viewers worldwide. The concert provided new opportunities to the global concert and performance industry that sank deep into a depression due to a COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. A maximum number of simultaneous users estimated at 756,600 watched the live online concert from a special studio on June 14. Big Hit Entertainmen 2020-06-15