"Ban on Eating in PC Bangs? PC Bang Owner Frustrated, Says It's Like Banning Ramen Sales at Snack Shops"

On the 19th of last month, a PC room in Namdong-gu, Incheon, was empty inside due to the suspension of operations caused by social distancing measures.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Yeon-ju] Starting from the 14th, as social distancing measures in the Seoul metropolitan area were eased from level 2.5 to level 2, the restriction on restaurant operations that allowed only takeout and delivery after 9 PM was lifted. However, a measure prohibiting minors from entering and eating in PC bangs has caused dissatisfaction.

Choi Yoon-sik, director of the Korea Internet Content Service Cooperative who has been operating a PC bang for 20 years, said in an interview with MBC's "Kim Jong-bae's Focus" on the morning of the 15th, "If you handle cooked food, you need to register as a food service business," and criticized, "This is like saying that snack bars should not sell ramen."

Regarding the restriction on minors' entry, he expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "The government initially issued a business suspension order with a gathering ban, but if they had issued an administrative order restricting entry from the start, there would have been no disruption to business due to the suspension," and added, "If they were going to take strong administrative measures, wouldn't it have been enough to just lift that restriction?"

Director Choi explained that the government's sudden announcement of business resumption has caused difficulties in operations. He said, "If they had informed us in advance over a period of time, it wouldn't have been this difficult," and added, "Since business has been suspended for 26 days, many employees have already resigned. Even if we want to operate, we cannot because there are no workers."

He also mentioned, "There is a manpower supply issue, but due to the long-term business suspension, we have also applied to suspend the dedicated business line."

Regarding the government's announcement to provide disaster relief funds of 2 million won to self-employed and small business owners, he said, "2 million won in disaster relief is less than the electricity bill during peak season," and added, "The minimum wage is 1.76 million won, so 2 million won is roughly equivalent to labor costs. Some of our cooperative members pay over 10 million won in rent."

Director Choi explained, "Since PC bangs have large business premises, the rent is also quite high," and said, "We even petitioned to lift the gathering ban by offering to pay about 2 million won."

Finally, he urged, "Although it is a small industry, I hope concerns will also be extended to the related industries."

Meanwhile, from the 14th, with the easing of social distancing, restaurants, coffee shops, and small to medium-sized academies in the metropolitan area can operate normally while mandatorily following quarantine rules. PC bangs were also removed from the 'high-risk facilities' category, allowing them to operate.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH), the recent 'Seoul Metropolitan Area Quarantine Adjustment Plan' focuses on easing business restrictions on various multi-use facilities. Due to the significant damage to small and medium-sized merchants caused by the level 2.5 distancing measures implemented for two weeks from the 30th of last month to the 13th, a compromise was sought between quarantine and the economy.

Under this measure, franchise coffee shops such as Starbucks and Coffee Bean, which were only allowed takeout and delivery orders during level 2.5, resumed in-store operations as before. This measure will be applied for two weeks until the 27th.

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