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K-Pop’s Global Success and Its Innovative Production System

Author

Listed:
  • Joseph Kim

    (School of Management, RMIT University, Melbourne 3001, Australia)

  • Seung-Ho Kwon

    (Korea Research Initiatives, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2052, Australia)

Abstract

The global music market has witnessed the rapid rise of Korean pop music, K-pop, in recent years. While there has been an increased interest of scholars from various disciplines to account for the global success of K-pop, limited attention has been paid to the key players in the industry, music businesses. Based on a historical analysis of Korea’s music industry, we contend that the innovative production system of Korea’s music businesses has played a significant role in facilitating K-pop’s global success. In order to provide theoretical support to the argument, this paper critically reviews the existing literature to present debates on (i) the process of how value is created in distinctive stages in the music industry; (ii) cooperative and competitive interactions between firms within the music industry; and (iii) changes in the music industry’s competitive environment.

Suggested Citation

  • Joseph Kim & Seung-Ho Kwon, 2022. "K-Pop’s Global Success and Its Innovative Production System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-17, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:17:p:11101-:d:907335
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Joeri M. Mol & Nachoem M. Wijnberg & Charles Carroll, 2005. "Value Chain Envy: Explaining New Entry and Vertical Integration in Popular Music," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(2), pages 251-276, March.
    2. Dorothy Leonard-Barton, 1990. "A Dual Methodology for Case Studies: Synergistic Use of a Longitudinal Single Site with Replicated Multiple Sites," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 1(3), pages 248-266, August.
    3. Stephanie Lu Wang & Qian Gu & Mary Ann Glinow & Paul Hirsch, 2020. "Cultural industries in international business research: Progress and prospect," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(4), pages 665-692, June.
    4. Paul M. Hirsch, 2000. "Cultural Industries Revisited," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 11(3), pages 356-361, June.
    5. Kim, Seongcheol & Hwang, ShinYoung & Kim, Junghwan, 2021. "Factors influencing K-pop artists' success on V live online video platform," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(3).
    6. Dominic Power & Daniel Hallencreutz, 2002. "Profiting from Creativity? The Music Industry in Stockholm, Sweden and Kingston, Jamaica," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 34(10), pages 1833-1854, October.
    7. Jimmyn Parc & Shin Dong Kim, 2020. "The Digital Transformation of the Korean Music Industry and the Global Emergence of K-Pop," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-16, September.
    8. Peter Tschmuck, 2006. "Creativity and Innovation in the Music Industry," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-1-4020-4275-1, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Gelayol Safavi Jahromi & Sepehr Ghazinoory, 2023. "How to use bits for beats: the future strategies of music companies for using Industry 4.0 technologies in their value chain," Information Systems and e-Business Management, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 505-525, September.

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