S Korea launches plan to revitalize pop music industry

SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Chinese media) -- The South Korean government

on Wednesday announced its five-year plan to invest 127 billion won (91 million

U.S. dollars) in the country's pop music industry.

Under the plan, which is intended to revitalize the

consumption of local pop music industry, the government will help lead the

industry to global market, the Culture Ministry said.

The goal of the plan is to boost up the market size

from the current level of 844 billion won (605 million U.S. dollars) to

1.7trillion won (1.2 billion U.S. dollars) by 2013, the ministry said.

As a part of the plan, the government proposed to

build two concert halls in Seoul by 2013, one with 360 seats in Sangamdong,

Seoul, near the World Cup Stadium, and the other with 3,900 seats inside the

Seoul Olympic Stadium.

The South Korean pop music industry has been going

through historic recession since 2000 as illegal music downloads on the Internet

became prevalent.