"Capture the Subscription Economy Market" Card Companies Offer Generous Discounts and Rewards

Introducing Cards with Concentrated Benefits on OTT, Rental Services, and More

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Card companies have entered the competition to dominate the subscription economy market, which is rapidly emerging as a new consumption culture. They have launched a series of credit cards that offer discounts and rewards when paying for online video services (OTT), rental services, and more, jumping into the race to attract customers. One advantage is that the subscription economy system automatically renews contracts unless the automatic payment is canceled, allowing companies to secure long-term customers.

According to the card industry on the 25th, Hyundai Card recently launched the 'Digital Lover,' which offers up to a 10,000 KRW discount on major digital streaming services such as YouTube Premium, Netflix, and Melon. Targeting the digital native generation, this card focuses on benefits for digital services like OTT. It also provides paid subscription services for shopping, travel, and digital content.

Shinhan Card also introduced the 'Deep Ones Card' earlier this month, promoting a total subscription economy service. When paying for home appliance rentals or online subscription products such as music sites and OTT with this card, points are accumulated. Previously, Shinhan Card became the first in the domestic financial industry to sign a partnership agreement with Netflix.

KB Kookmin Card launched the 'KB Kookmin Easy Link Titanium Card,' which offers benefits when paying for home appliance rental services or automatic utility bill payments. Major card companies such as Samsung Card with the 'Number Card V4' and Woori Card with the 'Card's Jeongseok APT' are introducing products specialized for the subscription economy. Hana Card also created a 'Subscription Economy Department' through an organizational restructuring earlier this year.

The reason card companies are releasing new products related to the subscription economy is due to the market's growth and customer retention effects. The subscription economy is a service where customers pay a monthly fee (subscription fee) and regularly receive necessary products or services. Recently, the scope has expanded beyond rental services and OTT to include fashion, health, and more. The growth is also steep. From a market size of 215 billion USD in 2000, it has more than doubled in 20 years. Global investment firm Credit Suisse forecasts the global subscription economy market size to reach 530 billion USD (approximately 625 trillion KRW) this year.

From the card companies' perspective, they can expect an increase in main customers through users of the subscription economy. Since automatic transfer services are rarely changed, it can also prevent dormant customers from occurring. An industry official said, "The immediate profits from launching products related to the subscription economy are not large," but added, "In the long term, it can maintain performance through regular payments and turn customers into loyal users."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.