Record number of moviegoers visit theaters in Nov

Over ten million people visited theaters in November, the highest number in Korean box office history, although the market share of Korean films dropped compared to the previous month.

According to statistics released by Korea's major multiplex CJ CGV, the Korean box office drew in a total 10,676,101 viewers in November, about a 13 percent increase from both the previous month and the same period last year.

CJ explained that it was the first time the total of number of moviegoers surpassed the 10 million mark during the month of November in its own and the official Korean Film Council's history of compiling data.

Analysts cited the increase in movie audience to the commercial successes of Hollywood blockbuster movie "2012" and several Korean hit films including "Good Morning President", "Cheongdam Bosal" and "White Night".

However, Korean films' presence on the local box office dropped, accounting for 62.8 percent of all films in October but 40.5 percent in November. The figure is also a 7.3 percent decrease compared to last year.

From January to November this year, 51.4 percent of the audience watched Korean films, the figure increasing by 9.4 percent compared to last year but dropping by 1.1 percent from 2007.

Reporter : Ko Kyoung-seok kave@asiae.co.kr
Editor : Lynn Kim lynn2878@asiae.co.kr