Korean TV and the Hallyu Wave in Hong Kong

- Vivian Tong
In recent years, the increased popularity of South Korean culture around the world is significant enough to be given its own term as the “Korean Wave” or the “한류” (Hallyu). Beginning in the late 1990s, the Hallyu wave is led by Korean TV Dramas and reaches overwhelming popularity in places such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China. According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in Korean, more than 9.4% of the total amount of the broadcast programs that South Korean export to otherAsian countries is directed to Hong Kong.

The Huge Hit Drama of 2006, 대장금  (Dae Jang Geum)

It is surprising to see how Korean TV has inte-grated so well into Hong Kong culture, and theimpact that it has not only on the younger demographics, but on older generations as well. The subject of Korean TV has become a hot topic of discus-sion and has made its way into the conversations of teenagers and adults alike. In 2006, the Korean drama “대장금” (Dae Jang Geum) received much interest in Hong Kong, which led to the drama garnering views surpassing the record of highest drama ratings set in 1991. A recent study by RTHK on the Hallyu wave on Hong Kong shows that more than half of the people surveyed view Korean dramas as the driving force of the Korean wave.

Another Popular Drama of 2006, 궁 (Goong, or Palace)

This interest of Hong Kong peo-ple in Korean dramas is fueled by the unanimous opinion that the quality of locally produced TV series are declining. The TV dramas that Hong Kong produced was once acclaimed throughout the Chinese speaking world. However, in recent years, people could not but feel that they have taken a dip in quality.
With the broadcast of Korean dramas on the major TV channels as well as pay television channels, people are instantly captivated by the inter-esting plots as well as the spec-tacular special effects which they feel are lacking in local TV dramas.

Korean dramas have since been very favorable to Hong Kong audiences, even setting trends in Hong Kong.