Mason Korea recently hosted the inaugural iDesign Seminar: K-Content in collaboration with Incheon City. The event brought together academic, government, and industry leaders to explore strategies for strengthening Korea’s cultural content sector. It was supported by Incheon Metropolitan City, Incheon Tourism Organization, Hanwha Corporation, and SM C&C.
During the seminar, Mason Korea announced plans to establish a K-Content Research Center, which will provide academic and policy support for “K-con-land,” a new Korean-content hub initiative led by the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZ).
The event opened with a congratulatory address from Joshua Park, campus dean of Mason Korea. The first session, under the theme “Decode,” featured K-pop expert Gyu Tag Lee, an associate professor of global affairs at Mason Korea who presented on the growth of K-content from a discourse analysis perspective.
This was followed by the “Deploy” session, which included case presentations by four industry practitioners—Bomin Seo (Incheon City), Song Jae Lee (SM C&C), Taehyun Kim (Incheon Tourism Organization), and Beom-seok Moon (Hanwha)—who shared real-world insights on policy, branding, tourism, and content innovation.
The experts shared their thoughts on the global potential of K-content, best practice case studies, and concrete policy ideas to help position Incheon as a global content hub.
In the final session, Lee moderated a panel discussion on how Incheon can drive K-content creation. Mason Korea students also contributed thoughtful questions during the Q&A session, sparking further dialogue.
“The Korean Wave, or Hallyu—which refers to the globalization of K-culture and K-content—has already spanned nearly 30 years,” said Lee. “It began with the popularity of Korean dramas in Chinese-speaking regions and has since expanded to K-pop and the broader realm of Korean media and culture. Now is the time to envision the future of K-culture and K-content. This requires not only strong central government support but also regional efforts to develop K-content.”
“Mason Korea has long engaged in research and education on Hallyu, the K-pop music industry, K-games, and public diplomacy, involving experts from various fields,” said Park. “The K-Content Research Center, to be launched this year, will work closely with Incheon City to develop local content discourse, advance academic research, promote programs, and nurture future talent.”
He added, “This seminar serves as a model of university-industry-government cooperation and a meaningful starting point for shaping the future of K-content. Mason Korea will continue to expand research and education collaborations with domestic institutions, businesses, and universities to play a trusted role as a global gateway contributing to the development of Korea’s K-content industry.”