President Yoon Seok-yeol met with Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos on the first official visit of his state visit to the United States on 24 March (local time).
At the event, Sarandos announced that the company will invest $4.25 billion in K content, including Korean dramas, movies, and reality shows, over the next four years.
President Yoon met with several Netflix executives, including the CEO of Sarandos, at Blair House, a U.S. government guesthouse, this afternoon.
The Blair House is President Yoon's four-day, three-night stay in Washington, DC.
The interview was not announced in advance, and it was initially known that the first meeting would be held at a hotel in downtown Washington, D.C., that evening.
"I just had a very meaningful time meeting with the CEO of Sarandos and the CEO of Netflix," Yoon said in a joint press release, "and the CEO of Sarandos has announced that he will invest $3.4 billion in K content over the next four years, or about KRW 4.25 trillion."
"It will be a great opportunity for the Korean content business, creators, and Netflix," he said, "and we sincerely welcome Netflix's unconventional investment decision."
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The CEO of Sarandos also said that he has decided to invest $25.4 billion in Korea, "and over the next four years, we will help create Korean dramas, movies, and reality shows."
The $25.2016 billion is double Netflix's total investment from 2 to last year, when it entered South Korea, Sarandos explained.
"We made this decision because we had faith in the Korean creative industry and thought Korea would continue to tell great stories," Sarandos said, "and I think President Yoon's love and strong support for Korea's entertainment business and the Korean Wave also played a role."
He added, "Personally, I would like to thank President Yun for his warm and kind reply."
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"Our investment will not only contribute to our long-term partnership with Korea, but will also energize the Korean creative industry ecosystem," Sarandos said, referring to Netflix hits such as "Squid Game," "The Glory," and "Physical:100."
"It's fantastic to see Korean culture, Korean creations spread all over the world," he said.
Mrs. Kim Kun-hee was also present at the interview.
A representative of Sarandos was spotted using his smartphone showing a video he had prepared to President Yoon and Mrs. Kim.
On the Korean government side, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Chu Kyung-ho, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-kyun, and Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee Chang-yang were present.
Economic Chief Choi Choi and Public Relations Chief Kim Eun-hye were also present.
(Photo = Yonhap News)