From Recruitment to Psychotherapy... Government Promotes 'Everyday Contactless Transformation'

Non-Face-to-Face Transition in Daily Life Sector
January 28 Project Announcement
Project Briefing Also Online

[Asia Economy Reporter Minyoung Cha] Since March last year, Mr. Na Jinyoung, a recruitment manager at a mid-sized domestic company, has switched the entire hiring process to an online format to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). As a result, the online method proved to be more efficient in terms of cost reduction and convenience for applicants compared to offline methods. The company also plans to expand the adoption of non-face-to-face evaluations.

Min Ji-won, a fourth-year professional telemarketer, reported mental fatigue as online shopping complaints surged last year. At the hospital she visited for psychological counseling, she was recommended psychological care through digital therapeutics that can be used at home. Since her job is generally stressful, she plans to continue using the service regularly for mental health management.

The government is fostering the non-face-to-face service industry that links daily life with information and communication technology (ICT).

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the National IT Industry Promotion Agency announced on the 27th that they will post a notice related to the activation project for leading non-face-to-face services in daily life on the 28th. This is part of the 'Digital New Deal' policy implementation plan announced earlier this year.

To this end, they are soliciting proposals in a total of eight fields: seven designated tasks including ▲non-face-to-face evaluation ▲infection disease response safe touch ▲smart mental care ▲infection disease response robots ▲advancement of lifestyle platform services ▲leisure and home training platforms ▲last-mile robot delivery, and one free task.

Consortia selected for the seven designated tasks will receive up to 1 billion KRW per project, and up to 500 million KRW will be provided for the free task.

The project briefing session will be held on the 28th through the online 'Digital New Deal Project Integrated Briefing,' and related videos can be viewed on Naver TV, Kakao TV, YouTube 'NIA TV1,' and the Digital New Deal website.

The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to invest a total of 40 billion KRW by 2025 to expand leading non-face-to-face services using digital new technologies such as XR and 5G and innovative ideas.

Lee Seungwon, Director of Information and Communication Industry Policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT, stated, "Even after the end of COVID-19, we will actively support the expansion of pilot projects and foster specialized service companies to ensure that lifestyle-oriented non-face-to-face services can be widely spread."

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