Lee Jae-jung, Chair of the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, urged Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choi Hwi-young on October 23 to make greater efforts to promote the gaming industry. During the committee's comprehensive audit, Chair Lee raised issues including gaming technology standards, the outflow of IP overseas, the proliferation of AI, and the integration of esports into formal sports. She also requested the minister's attendance at G-STAR. Minister Choi responded that next year's gaming support budget has been secured and promised he would definitely attend this year's G-STAR.
Chair Lee's remarks were closer to a plea than a formal questioning. She opened by noting that the industry and players might feel that "the government and politicians don't seem interested in games." She went on to assess that while the gaming industry looks glamorous on the surface, beneath it lies widespread vulnerability once mid-sized and larger companies are excluded. Consequently, the industry and gamers worry about the foreign leakage of domestic gaming technology and IP, questioning whether adequate protection systems are in place.
She also offered recommendations for policy direction. Pointing out that South Korea has often lagged in establishing international standards, Chair Lee suggested leading the creation of international standards in the gaming field as an example. Regarding the integration of esports into formal sports, she viewed it as a matter of aligning legal and institutional frameworks with a reality that has already taken place. As for Japan, she noted that while the market sizes are similar, South Korea has not built the same degree of content scalability in gaming as Japan, adding that there is room for cooperation alongside competition.
Concerns over AI were also raised. Chair Lee cited diagnoses that the gaming industry faces a major threat from AI, describing the current era as one where "development happens with just a single prompt." She explained that workers in gaming content creation likely face even greater anxieties. She asked the ministry to carefully examine the industry's current conditions and check from a gamer's perspective whether policy measures fall short or go too far.
G-STAR was cited as an indicator of government interest. Chair Lee stated that the industry gauges whether it is being neglected based on whether the government attends G-STAR. Last year, neither the minister nor the vice minister attended G-STAR, leaving only working-level staff to visit the venue. Chair Lee remarked, "While whether the government attends or not may not determine the success or failure of the show," it carries symbolic weight as a signal to the industry and players, requesting that the minister attend this time to demonstrate "signs of sincere consideration."
Minister Choi acknowledged the crisis facing the South Korean gaming industry. He explained that games account for the largest share of domestic content exports. However, he diagnosed that Korean games, which once led the global market with PC titles, are now being pushed back by Chinese games and experiencing slowed growth. He stated that determining how to steer the gaming industry forward is "an immensely large task."
As a solution, he outlined next year's business plan. Support for global AAA blockbusters and the promotion of indie games form the two main pillars. Programs are also being prepared to nurture talent in response to changing development environments driven by AI and to help them gain hands-on experience. Minister Choi explained that the relevant budget allocations have been properly reflected.
Regarding esports, Minister Choi affirmed the same direction as Chair Lee. He stated that domestic IP games must be included as official esports titles and committed to making efforts to integrate esports into the realm of sports to invigorate the gaming sector as a whole.
He responded with a commitment to attend G-STAR. Minister Choi explained that he was unable to attend last year due to parliamentary schedules, adding that he had already promised the industry, "Fortunately, there are no National Assembly schedules yet for this year, so I will definitely attend." He also asked lawmakers to join him at G-STAR if their schedules permit.
