US media giant Netflix is beefing up efforts to secure popular Korean-made films and shows as part of a strategy to boost its presence in the global streaming service market. Netflix, which launched its Korean service in 2015, said it set up a separate production firm, Netflix Entertainment Korea, which deals with fostering and financing up-and-coming Korean-language content, in September. "It is part of our efforts to introduce more Korean content to the world," Netflix Services Kor

The National Assembly passed a bill Tuesday that would allow globally recognized male pop culture artists to postpone their mandatory military duties. The assembly's plenary session gave the nod to the bill on revising the Military Service Act to grant an exceptional right to defer national defense duties to acclaimed pop artists, such as K-pop megastars BTS, who helped elevate the country's global reputation. The revision was proposed in September after BTS became the first-ever South Korean

A China-based fan community of Jin, a member of K-pop megastar BTS, opened a street project in western Seoul on Tuesday to celebrate the singer's 28th birthday, officials said. The community named China Jin Bar opened the BTS Jin Theme Street on the main commercial festival avenue of the bustling entertainment district near Hongik University, located in Seoul's western ward of Mapo, ward officials said. Jin, a sub vocalist of BTS, was born on Dec. 4, 1992, in South Korea. China Jin Bar organi

Concerns are mounting over a possible shortage of hospital beds for novel coronavirus patients in critical condition, as daily new cases in the country continue to pile up. South Korea reported 451 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, raising the total caseload to 34,652, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Tuesday's daily tally stayed in the 400 range for the third day in a row. Noticeably, the number of seriously or critically ill COVID-19 patients came to 97 as of

Rival parties on Tuesday agreed on a 558 trillion-won ($504 billion) state budget bill for next year that includes nearly 4 trillion won earmarked for additional COVID-19 relief funds and coronavirus vaccine purchases. The agreement was made during a meeting of floor leaders and two other senior lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party and the main opposition People Power Party held earlier in the day. The agreed amount represents an increase of 2 trillion won from what the government initia

The United States has no plan as of yet to establish a NATO-like regional security headquarters in the Asia Pacific, a State Department official said in an interview video released Tuesday. Marc Knapper, deputy assistant secretary for Korea and Japan at the East Asian and Pacific affairs bureau, made the remark in a pre-recorded interview with the US Embassy in Seoul, referring to the Quad, a US-led security forum involving Australia, India and Japan. "At this point, there is no plan to c

The Cabinet approved a revised regulation Tuesday to expand the coverage of the state employment insurance program to artists. The labor ministry said artists who are in a work contract and earn at least 500,000 won ($450) per month will be eligible under the amended executive ordinance of the Employment Insurance Act, which will go into effect on Dec. 10. It is the first step in the government's long-term plan to expand employment insurance to all forms of workers by 2025. The labor ministry

South Korean builders' business sentiment increased for the third consecutive month in November on a recovery in new orders despite the prolonged coronavirus crisis, a poll showed Tuesday. The construction business survey index (CBSI) stood at 85.3 last month, up 5.4 points from the previous month, according to the survey by the Construction and Economy Research Institute of Korea. The November figure was the highest monthly tally for this year, but it was still below the benchmark level. A r

North Korea could try to improve its currently chilled relations with South Korea next year so as to strengthen its leverage in future nuclear negotiations with the United States, a state-run think tank said Tuesday. The Seoul-based Korea Institute for National Unification also said that the May-September period will be a "golden time" to make progress in stalled nuclear talks and inter-Korean ties as the Tokyo Summer Olympics could serve as a platform for resuming talks. The North i

South Korean babies born in 2019 are expected to live more than 83 years, data showed Tuesday, amid improved public awareness about health and better medical systems. Life expectancy at birth averaged 83.3 years last year, six months longer than a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. Compared with 10 years ago, the average life expectancy became 3.2 years longer. The tally also marked a sharp hike from 62.3 years in 1970, when the country began compiling related da

A proposal by the incoming US administration of President-elect Joe Biden to hold working-level talks with North Korea can be a "good starting point" to resume the long-stalled nuclear negotiations, a former US intelligence official said Tuesday. Andrew Kim, who retired as the chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's Korea Mission Center in 2018, made the remark during a webinar on the South Korea-US alliance, saying the North appears to be waiting to see what the Biden camp will sa

The military reported four new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, the latest in a series of infections at barracks across the country. An Army officer stationed in the city of Chuncheon, northeast of Seoul, tested positive for COVID-19 after coming into contact with a civilian patient, prompting the authorities to carry out tests for around 180 members of his unit, according to the ministry. A civilian worker for the Navy in the southern city of Jinhae was confirmed to have been infected upo

K-pop megastar BTS set another record on YouTube, with its music video for the song "MIC Drop (Steve Aoki Remix)" racking up 800 million views on YouTube, its agency said. YouTube views for the music video, released in November 2017, reached the milestone at around 6:56 a.m. Tuesday, according to Big Hit Entertainment. "MIC Drop" is a track that was originally included in the BTS album "LOVE YOURSELF: Her" that dropped in September 2017. It was later remixed by Am

South Korea and the United States are not just mere friends or allies but "family," and their alliance will remain ironclad based on their deeply shared values, US Ambassador Harry Harris said Tuesday. Harris made the remarks during a peace conference held in Seoul and via video link to mark the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War, saying the alliance between the two countries has only grown stronger since the war. "The US and other sending states came to

윤석열 검찰총장이 최근 신종 코로나바이러스 감염증(코로나19) 확진자와 식사를 해 진단검사를 받은 것으로 확인됐다. 다만 윤 총장은 검사 결과 음성 판정을 받았다. 1일 법조계에 따르면 윤 총장과 최근 오찬을 함께 한 일선 검사 중 수원지검 검사가 뒤늦게 코로나 확진 판정을 받았다. 윤 총장은 지난달 23일 `공판중심형 수사구조 개편 방안'을 시범 실시 중인 일선 검찰청 검사들을, 그다음 날에는 `사회적 약자 보호'에 힘쓴 검사들을 대검찰청으로 초대해 오찬을 하며 격려했다. 윤 총장은 수원지검 검사가 확진됨에 따라 코로나19 진단 검사를 받았으며 음성 판정을 받은 것으로 알려졌다. 오찬 자리에 함께 있던 조남관 대검 차장검사 역시 음성 판정을 받은 것으로 알려졌다. 보건 당국으로부터 자가 격리 대상자로 통보받은 사람도 없는 것으로 알려졌다. 윤 총장은 지난달 24일 저녁 추미애 법무부 장관으로부터 직무집행 정지 명령을 받아 그 직후부터 모든 업무를 못 보고 있다. (연합뉴스

The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) has officially adopted new guidelines to identify seas by numbers instead of names, officials said Tuesday, a decision expected to help ease a long-running row over what to call the body of water between South Korea and Japan. IHO member states had reached a consensus during last month's General Assembly on the proposal to adopt a new digital dataset, known as S-130, as a standard for a world map of oceans. Under the proposal, the current standa

The daily number of new coronavirus cases in South Korea stayed in the 400 range for the third day in a row Tuesday, but health authorities say the next few days may be critical in the virus fight amid concerns over a third infection wave coming with the winter season. The country added 451 more COVID-19 cases, including 420 local infections, raising the total caseload to 34,652, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). It reported no additional coronavirus fatalitie

South Korea launched a global research and development cooperation program Tuesday to help local materials, parts and equipment makers forge technology tie-ups with German auto giant BMW and other foreign firms. Under the program, the government will invest 100 billion won ($90.1 million) over the next three years starting in 2021 to help domestic firms to make inroads into global supply chains, the industry ministry said. For this year's pilot project, Seoul has chosen seven consortia between

Samsung Electronics Co. maintained its leading position in the smartphone market of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region in the third quarter of the year, a report showed Tuesday. Samsung accounted for 45 percent of the GCC smartphone market in the July-September period in terms of units, up from 40 percent a quarter earlier, according to industry researcher International Data Corp. (IDC). "With its large portfolio of models in the entry-level and mid-range price bands, Samsung not

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday on the back of upbeat economic data that raised hopes for a faster-than-expected recovery amid the pandemic. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 36.05 points, or 1.39 percent, to 2,627.39 in the first 15 minutes of trading. South Korea's economy grew 2.1 percent in the July-September period from the previous quarter, faster than its earlier estimate of 1.9 percent expansion. The country's exports also rebounded, rising 4 perce