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The bright and dark sides of outsourcing dramas
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'Full house', 'Jangbogo', 'Bomnal', People who love Korean soap operas have heard about these names at least once. But how many people actually know who makes these dramas? The immediate answer may be the broadcast stations that show these programs, such as Korea Broadcasting System(KBS) or Seoul Broadcasting System(SBS). If you look carefully, however, at the end of an episode, you will see a company name flashed on the bottom right corner of your TV screen. Names likes 'Kim jong-hak Productions' or 'Sidus HQ' are just two of several companies that broadcast stations work with to outsource the production of their TV dramas. Outsourcing is a business trend that is becoming increasingly popular not just in Korea but in other countries as well. To maximize profits and to expand the variety of programs shown countries like the U. S , and Japan have turned to outsourcing. Korea began adopting this method in 1991.
According to Korean laws, a broadcast station can outsource 40 percent of its entire programs. At present, the numbers tend to average at 35percent. Why do many broadcast stations seem to prefer outsourcing their TV programs? One of the biggest reasons is the reduced cost of production. For broadcast stations, it is impossible to cast top stars and still spend little money. However, if they outsource to outside companies, they can solve the problem of expense through product placement (PPL).
However, outsourcing programs, especially dramas, result in some negative effects. First of all, to make up for the expense of extraordinary talent fees, these programs need large amounts of financial support. Suitable support surely helps to make high quality dramas, but extravagant support not only sometimes harms the flow of the drama but also irritates viewers with their inappropriate speeches. Next, to continue working with broadcast stations, getting high viewing rates, a director is sometimes forced to change the story or end it earlier than planned. Therefore, producers tend to use the same guaranteed formulas in storytelling over and over, depriving writers and directors the chance to be truly creative in their work.
Another dark side to the business of outsourcing is the structure of dividing up earning. Even though broadcast stations lack the money to make programs, they get almost all the profits when dramas go in the air. They earn advertising profits, but they do not share this with the outsourcing company. For example, when 'Full House' ended, KBS earned 36billion won, but they gave only 16 billion won to the outsourcing company to cover production costs, leaving the company without any options to share in the profits. Consequently, the producers from the outsourcing company earn a much smaller profit compared to that of broadcast stations.
To solve the problems of outsource programs, outsourcing companies should show their effort to make more creative programs. TV audience's attitudes also have to change. Most of them tend to watch a program because of its stars rather than the content. This only propels companies to fight endlessly for ratings. The distribution of profits must also change. In the current system, small outsourcing companies can hardly survive. Broadcasting companies should find ways to allow profit options for outsourcing companies.
In the end, viewers of these TV programs still hold the most power because without their approval, these shows will not succeed. That's why we as audiences must learn to be more demanding and discriminating of what broadcast stations and outsourcing companies offer us. For only then can Korean television programs become truly world-class.
Question
1. Have you felt or seen advertising in dramas? how do you think about this?
2. Do you think that our society needs outsourcing system to make dramas?
Why do you think that?
3. Do you know a lot of dramas were outsource?
What outsource dramas do you remember? How were they?
4. What do you think about the statement, 'a drama's succession depend on the viewing rates'?
What efforts do both sides (Broadcasting systems and outsourcing companies) need to do make
in order to make a good-quality drama without concerning about the viewing rates?
According to Korean laws, a broadcast station can outsource 40 percent of its entire programs. At present, the numbers tend to average at 35percent. Why do many broadcast stations seem to prefer outsourcing their TV programs? One of the biggest reasons is the reduced cost of production. For broadcast stations, it is impossible to cast top stars and still spend little money. However, if they outsource to outside companies, they can solve the problem of expense through product placement (PPL).
However, outsourcing programs, especially dramas, result in some negative effects. First of all, to make up for the expense of extraordinary talent fees, these programs need large amounts of financial support. Suitable support surely helps to make high quality dramas, but extravagant support not only sometimes harms the flow of the drama but also irritates viewers with their inappropriate speeches. Next, to continue working with broadcast stations, getting high viewing rates, a director is sometimes forced to change the story or end it earlier than planned. Therefore, producers tend to use the same guaranteed formulas in storytelling over and over, depriving writers and directors the chance to be truly creative in their work.
Another dark side to the business of outsourcing is the structure of dividing up earning. Even though broadcast stations lack the money to make programs, they get almost all the profits when dramas go in the air. They earn advertising profits, but they do not share this with the outsourcing company. For example, when 'Full House' ended, KBS earned 36billion won, but they gave only 16 billion won to the outsourcing company to cover production costs, leaving the company without any options to share in the profits. Consequently, the producers from the outsourcing company earn a much smaller profit compared to that of broadcast stations.
To solve the problems of outsource programs, outsourcing companies should show their effort to make more creative programs. TV audience's attitudes also have to change. Most of them tend to watch a program because of its stars rather than the content. This only propels companies to fight endlessly for ratings. The distribution of profits must also change. In the current system, small outsourcing companies can hardly survive. Broadcasting companies should find ways to allow profit options for outsourcing companies.
In the end, viewers of these TV programs still hold the most power because without their approval, these shows will not succeed. That's why we as audiences must learn to be more demanding and discriminating of what broadcast stations and outsourcing companies offer us. For only then can Korean television programs become truly world-class.
Question
1. Have you felt or seen advertising in dramas? how do you think about this?
2. Do you think that our society needs outsourcing system to make dramas?
Why do you think that?
3. Do you know a lot of dramas were outsource?
What outsource dramas do you remember? How were they?
4. What do you think about the statement, 'a drama's succession depend on the viewing rates'?
What efforts do both sides (Broadcasting systems and outsourcing companies) need to do make
in order to make a good-quality drama without concerning about the viewing rates?
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