The rise of South Korea’s cultural economy has been so profound in recent years that it has warranted its very own term known as Hallyu, or “Korean Wave,” which refers to the popularity of entertainment, fashion, music, TV shows, and movies. Hallyu is what makes South Korea unique in terms of being a leading exporter of popular culture. Now, it’s high time that Korean entertainment was modernized and brought into the 3D realm through cutting-edge technology — this is exactly what MILC Metaverse is planning to achieve through their latest partnership with the ZAPZEE.
ZAPZEE is a premier source and provider of entertainment news within the Korean Peninsula and beyond. They are one of the key brands of the ODK portfolio, and as such, they benefit from extensive reach that spans 36 countries, as well as IP distribution via streaming platforms across Asia. ZAPZEE’s partnership with MILC Metaverse represents a groundbreaking shift towards developing an engaging and immersive 3D environment for Korean entertainment content to exist within — all made possible thanks to blockchain technology.
Ushering in Modernity and Innovation
MILC is currently developing a ZAPZEE space within their metaverse whereby Korean entertainment enthusiasts can indulge in a diverse array of experiences and activities within a 3D environment. A metaverse is a virtual world with a fully functioning digital economy that enables individuals to interact, and even buy or trade digital assets such as NFTs and collectables. The ZAPZEE space within MILC’s vibrant metaverse will offer boundless possibilities for innovation as Hallyu continues to surge in popularity across the world as a cultural phenomenon.
Visitors of the unique metaverse space will have the opportunity to experience ZAPZEE’s Korean entertainment content in voxel form. A voxel is a 3D counterpart to a 2D pixel. The collaboration enables MILC to bring ZAPZEE’s exclusive Korean content to a global audience through advanced and immersive experiences. The ultimate goal is to create an unparalleled digital space which offers seamless and expandable metaverse activities for Korean entertainment enthusiasts to immerse themselves into.
South Korea as a Global Entertainment Powerhub
One allure of Hallyu can be exemplified by K-pop, which has boomed in popularity across the globe, with groups such as BTS and Blackpink charting on the Billboard Top 100 and touring internationally. K-pop, short for Korean Pop, encompasses diverse musical genres such as pop, hip-hop and electronic. According to a study by Statista, nearly 50% of respondents across 26 countries categorize K-pop as “very popular.” There are even digital K-pop groups such as Plave, MAVE, and K/DA that consist entirely of virtual members who are 3D rendered and only exist in the metaverse.
Online concerts have become so popular in South Korea that SM Entertainment, which is credited for inventing the cultural K-pop movement, has hosted shows where livestreaming audiences upwards of 50 million have been in attendance. MILC Metaverse and ZAPZEE acknowledge that we are at the stage of stepping into the next frontier of entertainment experiences, and so blending the two worlds of Korean content and 3D technology creates a virtual world like no other.
Imagine being transported to a sold-out stadium in Seoul surrounded by electric energy, thumping music and thousands of fans — all virtually. Gone are the days of squinting at tiny figures on a distant stage or jostling for a spot in a mosh pit when you can be front and center at a K-pop gig without even leaving your sofa.
MILC’s metaverse is widely recognized as a cutting-edge virtual realm and revolutionary social space where creativity, connection and immersive experiences can converge. Hendrik Hey, Founder and CEO of MILC expressed his delight about the partnership with ZAPZEE: “Content is exactly the heritage and the core of the MILC project. That is why we are so proud to be partnering with ZAPZEE and showcase their exciting content to our global network. By working together, we embody the true essence of the metaverse: to connect, empower, and entertain our communities through collaboration and shared missions.”
Indeed, South Korea is considered to be a cultural superpower and global trendsetter, while its creative outputs are deeply rooted in its past with many contemporary artists, filmmakers, musicians and fashion designers paying homage to traditional values dating back to Korea’s dynastic kingdom days.
Both ZAPZEE and MILC are now partnering with the K-Pop superstar from BTS, Jung Kook. The goal is to help further advance MILC’s position in the global media industry, as well as to unlock synergies between content creators and distributors.
Overall, the new partnership will enable ZAPZEE’s extensive entertainment content to be bolstered by MILC’s metaverse, while the blending of synergies between the two platforms can serve to re-shape the cultural landscape of Hallyu in South Korea and beyond.
