South Korea is an amazing country with a rich history and a unique culture regarding digital content consumption. Livestreaming here isn't just a form of entertainment — it's a way of life. VTubing, community casting, esports, and more all thrive across multiple streaming platforms that are constantly competing for viewers. Streams Charts looks at the origins of livestreaming in South Korea and how it's evolved into what it is today.
The emergence of livestreaming in South Korea
2000–2005: the birth of esports
Livestreaming in South Korea started much earlier than in other countries. The phenomenon began in the late 1990s when TV channels OGN and MBC Game began broadcasting StarCraft: BroodWar tournament matches live. At the time, the RTS game was a major trend among Korean youth, and top players were treated like idols, much like today’s K-pop stars. These StarCraft: BroodWar broadcasts attracted thousands of viewers, long before YouTube and Twitch even existed.
Archived footage from the first StarCraft: BroodWar tournaments in South Korea
To give some context, esports was a huge deal in South Korea at the time. StarCraft: BroodWar tournaments were incredibly popular, with major companies like Samsung, SK Telecom, Hwaseung Group, and STX Corporation all having their teams. Even the South Korean Air Force had a team, whose players would compete in military uniforms and salute the audience after matches.
In just a few years, dozens of tournaments popped up, and one of the country’s oldest banks, Shinhan Bank, became the main sponsor of South Korea’s top StarCraft: BroodWar league. It’s no surprise that in 2000, South Korea hosted the first World Cyber Games, an esports version of the Olympics where national teams from around the world competed. Sponsored by Samsung, it became the biggest esports event for many years.
World Cyber Games 2021 Event in Seoul
As esports grew in popularity in South Korea, several TV channels were created to broadcast matches from leagues and tournaments. These channels also aired shows about esports, where players gave tips to beginners, took part in quizzes, and commented on their games and training.
Around the same time, community-casting of tournaments started, long before streaming platforms existed. Fans would download replays of their favorite games and watch them with recorded commentary from experts or the players themselves. The main challenge was syncing the video and audio, but fans quickly got used to it. Now, around 30 years later, both esports and livestreaming have come a long way, and they continue to grow together, not just in South Korea, but all over the world.
2005–2010: the beginning of streaming platforms
2005 to 2010 was a turning point for esports, as streaming platforms started to take off. Websites like YouTube, Justin.tv (which later became Twitch), and own3d.tv allowed people to stream content for people to watch online live. Around the same time, AfreecaTV launched in South Korea and quickly became a leading local streaming platform, which it still is today.
AfreecaTV became the home for many South Korean esports players. Both active competitors and retired gamers streamed their games, interacted with fans, and more. The platform was always focused on gaming content, even fielding its own teams for StarCraft, and games like League of Legends later. Over time, streaming services grew in popularity, slowly replacing TV channels as the main platform for broadcasting esports events.
2010–2015: social media, IRL streaming and K-pop
In the early days of livestreaming, gaming streams made up most of the content on platforms in South Korea. But over time, non-gaming streams became very popular too. This shift was partly thanks to the rise of K-pop, another huge cultural trend from South Korea.
K-pop is a music genre that began in South Korea, mixing Western electropop, hip-hop, dance music, and modern R&B. What started as a music style has now turned into a worldwide subculture with millions of fans. While some viewers followed every move of esports players, others were more interested in the voices of young singers in boy bands and girl groups.
The K-pop industry mostly communicated with fans through social media like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. But livestreams also became important. Popular K-pop artists held livestreams to connect with fans, take part in talk shows, quizzes, and giveaways. Following the lives of Korean idols became a popular and exciting activity, leading to more streams where fans talked about the latest news on their favorite groups and idols.
(G)I-dle stream on VLIVE
In 2015, Naver launched VLIVE, a livestreaming platform in South Korea made for fans to interact with K-pop stars and celebrities: artists like BTS, Blackpink, Red Velvet, and Stray Kids often streamed on VLIVE. It also featured exclusive music video premieres and fan clubs, building a community-based platform. Thanks in part to VLIVE, K-pop spread around the world.
2015–2020: mobile streaming, content-creator culture and COVID-19
By the mid-2010s, livestreaming platforms hosted plenty non-gaming content; K-pop idols and stars remain popular in this non-gaming sector. This wasn’t just a trend in South Korea, it was part of a global shift away from TV and towards internet-based content. Anyone could try, and with a bit of luck, anyone could create content and become famous.
A big boost for non-gaming streams came with the rise of TikTok Live: mobile streaming meant that people could broadcast from just about anywhere — streamers only needed a smartphone and mobile internet. IRL (In Real Life) streaming exploded in just a few years, with streams about travel, sports, and events becoming incredibly popular. Viewers realized that the real world could be just as interesting as video games — and they kept watching it on their phones or computers.
The global coronavirus pandemic changed the livestreaming industry massively. Lockdowns, canceled flights, and closed borders pushed people to look for entertainment indoors, usually online. Livestreaming saw a huge surge in popularity, with platforms regularly setting new viewership records and major esports tournaments hosted every weekend. South Korea, still the global esports leader in terms of viewership thanks to League of Legends events.
The pandemic also led many people around the world to seek remote work that didn’t tie them to one location. During lockdowns, many tried becoming streamers or bloggers, which helped the industry grow even more. Streaming platforms also gave creators ways to monetize their content, and for many, including people in South Korea, livestreaming became an important new source of income.
2020-Nowadays: What livestreaming looks like in South Korea now
In recent years, South Korea has become one of the most forward-thinking countries in terms of livestreaming and its accessibility. In addition to global platforms like YouTube, several local streaming services are specifically designed for Korean audiences. Currently, these include SOOP Korea (formerly AfreecaTV) and CHZZK by Naver, a major internet conglomerate in the country.
Twitch, the go-to platform for gaming and esports streams, was also huge in South Korea. However, in early 2024, it shut down operations in the country due to the high costs and technical challenges of maintaining servers. Despite Twitch leaving South Korea, the reach of local streams hasn’t dropped, streamers and viewers just moved to other local platforms.
Today, esports remains a core part of South Korean culture. For example, the 2023 World Championship attracted over 2,000,000 viewers at its peak on the Korean stream, which is the current viewership record by any language demographic in esports. Even English-language streams haven’t reached that level, with the highest being 1.87 million PV during Worlds 2024.
As for current trends, more and more Korean VTubers are gaining recognition in their home country. While Japan still leads in this area, Korean VTubers are joining major established agencies like NIJISANJI. There are also Korean-based VTuber agencies like StelLive on platforms like SOOP Korea and CHZZK. Many popular independent VTubers are from South Korea as well. For example, the VTubers from the ISEGYE IDOL group can be counted among them.
To highlight the standings of the current livestreaming sector in South Korea, Streams Charts looked at various stats and data to explore Korean livestreaming in 2024. In the text below, you’ll find out which streaming platforms are most popular in South Korea, what games and content Korean viewers enjoy, and other interesting details.
Most popular streaming platforms in South Korea
In 2024, Korean streams across all platforms generated a total of 4,860,000,000 Hours Watched — 10% more than in 2023. YouTube continues to lead in audience reach, with its share in the Korean market increasing from 47.4% to 51.4% over the past year.
Local streaming platforms SOOP Korea and CHZZK accounted for 30.4% and 15.1% of the total viewership hours, respectively, in 2024. Their share was much smaller before, but after Twitch's exit, they gained many viewers from the new market gap.
Despite officially exiting Korea, Twitch’s share of the Korean market remains at 2.9%: down from 26.6% the year before. Most of the remaining Korean-language content on Twitch is Korean creators broadcasting from other countries.
Read also: Twitch's last day in South Korea — last flash mob and streamer migration to other platforms
Most popular categories and channels in Korean livestreaming
The most popular category in the Korean livestreaming segment on YouTube is News & Politics, which generated 832,000,000 HW in 2024. A big part of this came from broadcasts by news channels like MBCNEWS, YTN, and 김어준의 겸손은힘들다 뉴스공장.
The Entertainment category on YouTube ranks the second most-watched segment in Korea with 466,000,000 HW in 2024. This category includes everything from Korean talk shows to ASMR channels like Relaxing Time for You, which feature 24/7 streams of calming music, rain sounds, and more.
The League of Legends category made it into the top three most popular categories for Korean livestreaming. The game holds a special place in the hearts of Korean viewers and is hugely popular across all streaming platforms. In 2024, Korean broadcasts of League of Legends accumulated a total of 323,900,000 HW, with the official LCK league channel ranking third in total viewership hours among all Korean channels. League of Legends wasn’t the only game in the top categories for Korean streams — StarCraft: Remastered and Minecraft also made it into the top ten.
Most popular channels on SOOP Korea and CHZZK
While YouTube remains the go-to platform for broadcasts from organizations like TV channels and shows, individual streamers are primarily dominating platforms like SOOP Korea and CHZZK. This imbalance is largely because these two host most of Korea’s esports community casters, who rise to the top with their tournament broadcasts.
Read also: CHZZK hit record platform peak viewers during 2024 LoL Worlds finals
The most-watched Korean streamer on SOOP Korea in 2024 was phonics1, a popular League of Legends community caster who covered all the major international tournaments, including the highly successful 2024 World Championship. Last year, his streams accumulated a total of 38,500,000 HW.
Read also: AfreecaTV's new live-streaming platform SOOP signs Faker and BuZz
On CHZZK, the top streamer was handongsuk, a big fan of gameplay content who covers hyped, new releases and keeps his audience engaged with a diverse range of content. Handongsuk had an equally impressive year, bringing in 36,200,000 HW.
If we were to picture the average Korean streamer, it would likely be a SOOP streamer who focuses on gaming content, covers League of Legends tournaments, and occasionally plays games like StarCraft: Remastered, Minecraft, or popular MMORPGs like Lost Ark. They spend a lot of time streaming, but their peak viewership tends to be on the smaller side. While many international streamers attract millions of viewers, very few Korean creators reached more than 200,000 PV in 2024.
Lately, VTuber streams have been gaining popularity in South Korea. There are even VTuber agencies that focus exclusively on local talent, such as StelLive, which feature popular VTubers from both CHZZK and SOOP Korea. These agencies are mainly made up of female VTubers who specialize in talk shows, music, and Let’s Plays. Their channels often feature gameplay of titles like Monster Hunter Wilds, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Elden Ring, along with collaborative gaming sessions in Minecraft or Grand Theft Auto V.
Some Korean VTubers have found success without being part of an agency. The most-viewed independent VTuber from South Korea is 탬탬버린, who streams on CHZZK. In 2024, 탬탬버린 generated over 10,480,000 HW, thanks to streams of Minecraft and League of Legends.
Gaming and non-gaming content in Korean livestreaming
Gaming content plays a key role in the Korean livestreaming scene. In 2024, gaming streams accounted for over 40.6% of the total Korean watch time. This share used to be even higher, but lately, non-gaming content, especially news and entertainment shows, has been gaining ground.
Despite esports' major influence in the digital entertainment industry, its share in Korean streams isn’t as dominant as one might think. Esports makes up less than 10% of the total viewership hours for all gaming streams in Korean.
It’s a mistake to think that Korean gaming streams have such large audiences mainly because of esports. But in some specific titles, this is true: as we mentioned earlier, Korean League of Legends streams in 2024 generated a total of 300,920,000 HW, with about 53% of those hours coming from esports broadcasts, including official streams and community casting.
Livestreaming in South Korea is a highly dynamic and rapidly evolving industry. Gaming content still plays a significant role, but non-gaming streams, particularly news and entertainment shows, are gaining more traction. Esports, while influential, doesn't dominate the space as much as one might expect, and gaming streams as a whole are driven by a wide variety of content, not just competitive gaming.
Platforms like SOOP Korea and CHZZK are increasingly popular, especially for community-driven content, while YouTube remains a dominant platform for organizational broadcasts. Local VTuber agencies are also becoming a significant force, showcasing South Korea’s growing interest in virtual streaming culture.
Overall, South Korea’s livestreaming scene is marked by diverse content, with a balance of gaming, news, entertainment, and emerging trends, reflecting both local preferences and global shifts in digital entertainment.
