New Delhi, 21st June 2023: Yonhap news agency said on Wednesday that YouTube will launch its first official retail channel for live commerce in South Korea on June 30.
South Korea already has a thriving live-streaming commerce industry led by internet behemoth Naver, making it an ideal test market for the global behemoth as Alphabet-owned company works on becoming more “shoppable.”
The new channel will launch in Korean and will be a 90-day endeavour. According to Yonhap and other Korean media, it would initially give a live-commerce platform to corporations and plans to livestream shopping content from roughly 30 brands.
According to Yonhap, it is YouTube’s first official retail channel in any country.
A YouTube spokesperson said, “We may experiment with a variety of YouTube Shopping features from time to time.”
With advertisers cutting back on spending and platforms like TikTok increasing competition, Google’s Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler stated in February that there was “lots of potential in making it easier for people to shop from the creators, brands, and content they love.”
Naver shares sank 4% on Wednesday morning, while retailer Lotte Shopping slumped 3.3%, compared to a 0.5% loss in the broader market.
According to Kyobo Securities, South Korea’s live commerce market is expected to rise to 10 trillion won ($7.7 billion) this year from 2.8 trillion won in 2021, with Naver now accounting for over 60% of the market.
