Korea, the First Country of Honour at Series Mania Forum
Just weeks ahead of its 2026 edition, Series Mania Forum is set to make history by honoring, for the first time, the Republic of Korea, one of the most influential markets in global series creation.
As such, KOCCA (Korea Creative Content Agency), a government organization that oversees and coordinates the promotion of the Korean content industry, along with eight additional Korean companies will be attending this year’s Series Mania Forum.
The eight participating companies include:
- Channel A Corporation
- CJ ENM
- EO Content Group
- KBS Media
- MBC (Munhwa Broadcasting Corp.)
- SLL Joongang
- Studio S
- WHYNOT MEDIA
An initiative supported by the CNC
This new Country of Honour initiative has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the CNC and its president, Gaëtan Bruel. KOCCA and the CNC signed a Memorandum of Understanding during Series Mania 2024 in which they announced plans to promote exchanges between Korea and France and to lay the foundation for the growth of the content industry between the two countries.
A Korean program at the heart of the Forum
As part of this new initiative, there will be :
- A Coming Next from Korea session,
- Prestigious speakers from the country in conferences panels,
- A networking cocktail,
- Other highlights during the event not to be missed.
A symbolic year for Franco-Korean relations
The selection of Korea as the Country of Honour coincides with the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Korea (1886 Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation). It also dovetails closely with last year’s BroadCast Worldwide (BCWW), Asia’s largest marketing event for broadcast video content, which honored France during its 25th edition in Seoul.
The growing influence of Korean content
As of 2024, the size of the Korean content market was estimated at USD 43.169 billion, representing a 5.7% increase from USD 40.849 billion in 2023. Korea continues to rank 8th globally in terms of content market size. The popularity of K-content in France is also rapidly expanding not only through OTT platforms such as Netflix but also via traditional French broadcast channels. According to viewership data released by Netflix,
viewing time for Korean content in France increased by more than 200% year-on-year.
The full Series Mania Forum program will be unveiled on February 12.
