Google‘s video streaming platform, YouTube, said on Wednesday that it seeks to take advantage of the game industry in Korea by operating a support program for rookie content creators about games. Korea is one of the leaders both in the global professional esports industry and in the game developing sector.
The world’s largest video streaming platform stated that it launched its creator supporting program called NextUp to 12 YouTube creators, mainly producing content associated with online games.
From 160 applicants, the 12 creators chosen participated in a three-day creator camp, where they learned how to create better videos, get more subscribers, and use high-quality video production equipment.
Ines Cha said the company decided to concentrate on developing Korean gaming YouTubers to ride on the country’s strong gaming industry. Ines Cha is the head of top creators, public figures, and gaming partnerships in the Asia-Pacific region at YouTube.
During a media conference in Seoul, Cha said, “Korea has one of the biggest game industries as there are prominent game developers and publishers. The country is also a leader in the esports industry. So we focused more on content about games here in Korea.”
The content creators adored the support program saying that it helped them in a lot of ways in terms of generating better content, building networks with other YouTubers, and better creator-subscriber communication relations.
A YouTuber nicknamed Gamjya said, “I am running a channel that introduces various mobile games, but it was hard to create my own identity. But I was able to learn a lot through this program.”
Another YouTuber SemoDuck, who produces videos about adventure and puzzle games, said she could share her content-creating knowhow and make more personal connections with other YouTubers.
“Creators usually don’t have this kind of opportunity to meet with each other and share their ideas because they are creating content by themselves in their rooms. The program helped me as I was able to share tips with other YouTubers,” she said.
The company already operated its support platform in various countries such as the U.K. The United States, Brazil, and India to nurture its content creator community.
Marc Lefkowitz said the company chose Korea for its NextUp program because the country has a “dynamic creator ecosystem.” He further said that the video streaming platform seeks to nurture its content creator community in Korea as the country has many creators that have a global impact. Marc Lefkowitz is the head of YouTube’s creator and artist development for the Asia Pacific region.
“Korea is an incredibly important country for YouTube. We’ve seen over 200 channels with one million-plus subscriber and more than 2,000 channels with 100,000 plus subscribers. We’ve created a dynamic creator ecosystem in Korea,” Lefkowitz said.
“While this NextUp is focused on gaming creators, we will continue to support the overall Korean creator ecosystem so that even more creators can share their stories with the global audience on YouTube,” he added.
