Link: TikTok sees K-culture spend doubling to $143 billion by 2030

The current market size of Hallyu — meaning Korean Wave, a catch-all term encompassing the country’s cultural exports — is estimated to be $76 billion, and viral content around K-culture should drive it up by capturing bigger audiences in key markets such as the United States and Southeast Asia, the report said. Overall spending could reach as high as $198 billion by decade’s end, if all the potential consumers who are intrigued start buying Korean consumer goods, services and entertainment. Compared to Japan, East Asia’s original heavyweight cultural exporter, South Korea’s output is still relatively small — but social media is helping to narrow the gap. Content on ByteDance’s TikTok is increasingly branching out to address topics such as Korean food and K-drama. It’s driven engagement, memes and real-world sales of products. In one case, sales of Buldak noodles skyrocketed after rapper Cardi B reviewed them on video and amassed nearly 40 million views. That sent shares of the Korean noodle maker Samyang Foods to a record high this year. #

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Yoooo, this is a quick note on a link that made me go, WTF? Find all past links here.