South Korea's cinema attendance falls as streaming surges, signaling price competition.

The Korean Film Council, known as KOFIC, released the latest edition of its Film Content Consumption Trends study, showing a notable shift in how Koreans watch films. The report finds that cinema attendance declined over the past year, even as online video streaming continued to grow.

Among survey respondents, 45.8% said their theater-going frequency had fallen compared with before. Of these, 16.5% reported a substantial drop and 29.3% a moderate one. By contrast, 42.1% said their theater visits remained about the same, and 12.1% said they had increased their cinema-going.

Several reasons were cited for fewer theater visits. The largest share pointed to ticket prices rising or becoming a burden (25.1%). Other factors included a perceived lack of good films (21.5%), the increasing availability of OTT content (17.5%), and the ability to watch films on other platforms shortly after release (17.4%).

The study highlights a wide gap between what consumers consider a fair ticket price and current prices. A plurality, 41.0%, indicated that 8,000 to 10,000 won is a fair price for a standard cinema ticket, while typical ticket prices currently stand at about 14,000 to 15,000 won.

OTT usage has grown more robustly. In the past year, 45.9% of respondents reported increased OTT use, while 12.6% reported a decrease. Platform-specific figures show Netflix at 88.0% usage among users, Coupang Play at 46.8%, TVING at 35.5%, Disney+ at 26.5%, and Wavve at 14.4%.

When asked about the main way they watch films, 56.1% identified OTT as their primary method, compared with 8.3% for theaters, 25.8% for traditional TV channels, and 9.1% for VOD rewatch services.

The report cautions that OTT expansion is not necessarily driving theater declines directly. It notes that heavier OTT users tend to continue visiting cinemas as well, suggesting the two platforms are more complementary than purely substitutive. The decline in cinema attendance is attributed to multiple factors, including price pressures, perceived price gaps, limited effectiveness of discounts, changes in leisure behavior, and the spread of word-of-mouth and rating-based viewing decisions.

To address these dynamics, the study proposes several policy and market responses. Rather than broad-based price cuts, it recommends targeted support for families and younger audiences. It also advocates for a holdback system to create a healthier loop between theater releases and streaming, stronger protection of domestic content IP, a fund to support immersive or experiential content, and relaxed rules governing venue and exhibition spaces.

Why this matters for the United States and other international audiences: Korea’s cinema and streaming markets are globally connected, with Netflix and other platforms operating at scale there. A price-sensitive audience and a robust streaming ecosystem influence both box-office strategies and licensing deals for international productions. The report’s emphasis on a complementary relationship between theaters and streaming, rather than pure replacement, has implications for how Hollywood studios and Asian partners plan release windows, co-financing, and content investment. It also highlights policy levers—such as targeted discounts, IP protection, and support for innovative formats—that could shape how other markets balance theatrical experiences with rapid streaming access.