CS Korea is the main US government trade promotion agency in Korea. The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) is the largest trade association in Korea. As a member of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA), KITA explores new trade opportunities for Korea by dispatching trade missions and market survey teams to a number of foreign countries on a regular basis. KITA's Trade Service Center also assists any potential foreign buyer or seller by responding to written inquiries from all over the world. The Center also offers on-the-spot consultation and personalized advisory service regarding trade rules and regulations, export and import procedures, business management, market research, technology development, and taxation. In addition, KITA maintains six overseas branch offices, two of which are based in Washington D.C. and New York.

Seoul also boasts the largest trade show venue in Korea, the Convention and Exhibition Center, popularly known as "COEX." Covering 36,027 square meters of exhibition space, COEX is a full-service trade organization offering multi-lingual simultaneous translation, world-class audio-visual equipment, state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems, and up-to-the-minute information services. The Seoul Trade Exhibition Center (SETEC) is also in Seoul and is operated by the Korea Trade- Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA).

In addition, Busan, the second largest city in Korea located in southeastern part of Korea, currently has one exhibition hall called the Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO). BEXCO is directly run by BEXCO, Inc., a Busan firm. The indoor exhibition hall has a floor space of 26,446 square meters. There is also an outdoor exhibition site that is 13,223 square meters in size.

Advertising

Korea's advertising market is completely open to 100 percent foreign equity participation. Foreign advertising agencies now control more than 50 percent of the Korean advertising market. Today, all the major international agencies are present in Korea.

There are four major broadcast networks (television and radio) in Korea. KBS I and KBS II are owned and operated by the Korean government, while MBC and SBS are independently operated. However, government influence remains since advertising time on these and other broadcast networks is sold exclusively through the government organization known as the Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation (KOBACO). Companies must register with this corporation if they intend to advertise in either of these two media. As of 2006, approximately 256 foreign and Korean agencies were registered with this corporation.

Though censorship in advertisement is still practiced in Korea, it is not as strict as it was in the past. The Korea Advertising Review Board (KARB), which consists of advertising and industry associations, currently controls advertising censorship procedures. In addition, the government’s Korean Fair Trade Commission is responsible for determining whether an advertisement makes accurate claims.

Several local TV stations have been established in recent years. This development, as well as the advent of cable television in 1995, has expanded advertising's potential reach to Korean audiences. As of December 2006, the Korean cable industry was served by 111 system operators and about 173 program providers offering diverse cable programs such as business news, sports, music, Buddhist programming, shows on the Korean board game, baduk ("Go"), etc. There are also five shopping channels, including CJ 39, Hyundai, LG, Woori, and Nongsusan. Estimated total sales for these five shopping channels in 2005 was USD 1.7 billion.

Advertising market opportunities are predicted to show strong growth as more Koreans gain access to electronic media. Cable television in Korea currently has an audience of over 12 million households. Additionally, the government took steps to promote broadcast satellite television in digital format in 2001, with expectations of nationwide coverage by 2010. Korea Digital Broadcasting (KDB), a subsidiary of state-run Korea Telecom, holds the contract for digital broadcasting. In 2005, KDB broadcast 208 satellite channels reaching an estimated 1.9 million households.

Internet advertising also offers significant market growth potential, since the number of computer users will further increase in the coming years. There are currently 12.7 million Internet using households in Korea, which amounts to about 88 percent of total households in Korea.

Local Fair Authorities

• Convention and Exhibition Center (COEX)
Tel: 82-2-6000-0114
Website: www.coex.co.kr

• Busan Exhibition and Convention Center (BEXCO)
Tel: 82-51-740-7300
Fax: 82-51-740-7320
Website: www.bexco.co.kr/eng/index.php

• Seoul Trade Exhibition Center (SETEC)
Tel: 82-2-2222-3800
Fax: 82-2-2222-3820
Website: www.setec.or.kr

• Daegu Exhibition and Convention Center (EXCO Daegu)
Tel: 82-53-601-5000
Fax: 82-53-601-5029
Website: www.excodaegu.com

KITA US Offices

• KITA NY Office
Tel: 212-421-8804(ext. 26)
Fax: 212-223-3827
E-Mail: kitany@N0SPAM.kita.net
Website: http://www.kita.org/kita/kita_index.jsp?siteUrl=usny.html

• KITA Washington Office
Tel: 917-699-2032, 703-242-5713
Fax: 703-242-5714
E-Mail: wayne@N0SPAM.kita.net
Website: http://www.kita.org/kita/kita_index.jsp?siteUrl=usny.html

• Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA)
Tel (rep): (82-2) 3460-7114
Fax(rep) : (82-2) 3460-7777
Website: http://www.kotra.or.kr/

To view the list of major newspaper agencies in Korea, go to the link below.

http://www.buyusa.gov/korea/en/newspapercontacts.html

CS Korea, provides the Single Company Promotion service to U.S. firms through which firms can promote their products in Korea. Additionally, the "Featured U.S. Exporters (FUSE)" site provides information on how a company can advertise products on the Commercial Service's worldwide website in various languages for free. Click on "FUSE" for more information.