[Korean Film News] 'Korean Wave' Breaks As Film Exports Slump

Korean films suffered a 68% drop in international sales in 2006, according to a report released on Thursday by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). Worldwide exports amounted to $24.5 million in 2006, down from $76 million the previous year. A cooling of interest towards Korean pics in Japan was the biggest culprit, with buyers taking only $10.4 million worth of product compared to a bumper $60.3 million in 2005.

Most other Asian countries also saw a drop in sales, with the notable exception of Thailand which rose 119% to $3.3 million. Thailand now ranks as the second largest overseas market for Korean films. North American and European territories remained more constant, with the U.S. dropping 2.7% to $2 million, and Germany and France taking $1.3 million each.

Meanwhile at home, KOFIC estimates that 163.4 million tickets were sold in 2006, up 12.6% from the previous year and amounting to box office revenues of $1.08 billion (1.01 trillion won). These figures come in a shade lower than those cited in a report by leading exhibitor CGV on January 9. The average viewer saw 3.4 films in 2006, up from 3.0 the previous year, and local cinema took a record 64.2% market share. KOFIC also estimated a total of 1,847 screens for the country as a whole, making for some of the highest average revenues per screen in the world.

Distributor rankings were given for Seoul only, with CJ Entertainment (23.3%) and Showbox (20.1%) leading the way, followed by Cinema Service (11.0%), SPRI (10.1%), UIP (7.6%), Fox (5.9%), Warners (5.8%), Lotte Entertainment (5.6%), Prime Entertainment (2.8%), and MK Pictures (2.4%).

[Source: Darcy Paquet, Variety]