FROM: Daesung Group

Daesung Group Joins 

the Global Digital Content Market

Daesung Group (CEO Younghoon David Kim) signed an MOU with ETRI and NZISI(The New Zealand Institute of Screen Innovation Limited) on the 3rd to form a strategic alliance on ‘Digital Content Technology and Business Collaboration’ under the presence of Lee Youn Ho, the Minister of Knowledge Economy, at The Northern Club in Auckland, New Zealand.
 
Having invested in the publishing industry, cinema funds, soap opera funds, game funds and digital music funds, Daesung Group, along with ETRI, which boasts numerous fundamental technologies concerning digital content, are both expected to benefit from the wider range of digital content collaboration and synergy following their alliance with New Zealand’s screen industry. In order to ensure execution of the MOU, the three parties have agreed to carry out a specific project within the first 6 months. An outline for the joint plan including a movie co-production will be ready sometime during the first half of this year.

Daesung Group plans to increase its presence in the digital content market following the MOU. By continuously reaching out to prominent figures in the New Zealand movie industry such as Peter Jackson, director of ‘The Lord of the Rings,’ Daesung Group has been working to establish a CG center in Korea. By making use of its connection with New Zealand, the Group plans to accelerate the development of a new digital content business model and create a sturdy investment environment for digital content.

Younghoon David Kim, CEO of Daesung Group said “This MOU is expected to result in furthering the presence of the Korean content industry in the global market” and added “Korea’s strength in IT along with its ability to plan and produce contents that led to the Korean Wave, will produce a new source of excitement in the content industry for both countries, through the integration of New Zealand screen industry’s global production power and marketing expertise which led to internationally-acclaimed works such as ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and ‘King Kong.’”
 
Discussions on the MOU initially began on September 2008, with discussions for an alliance between Daesung Group, ETRI and the Weta Workshops. Following President Lee Myung-bak’s visit to New Zealand, the alliance extended to include NZISI, New Zealand’s major screen institute.   

ETRI which boasts competence in fundamental technology such as computational fluid simulation will participate in joint technology development with New Zealand businesses specializing in digital content. Through member companies such as the special effects company Weta Workshops, game development business Sidhe Interactive, human-computer interface research lab HITLAB and the economic development agency Grow Wellington, NZISI will be providing solutions for digital content production as well as the overall project.