Promotion of Designating 'Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone' in Songdo, Incheon... Second Review Next Month

Designation of an 'Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone' exempt from outdoor advertising regulations, similar to New York's Times Square, is being promoted in the area around Convensia in Songdo International City, Incheon.

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority announced on the 11th that it has passed the first round of screening in the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's '2nd Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone Contest' and is preparing for the second round next month. The application area for the free display zone is the Convensia area in Songdo, which has strengths in urban infrastructure such as floating population, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions) facilities, commercial and transportation facilities. This area was also designated as the nation's first international conference complex district in 2018.

There are eight candidate sites nationwide that passed the first round of screening for the Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone, and the final site will be confirmed around December after the second round of screening. The number of sites to be finally selected has not been decided. Previously, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety designated the Gangnam COEX area in Seoul as the first Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone in 2016.

The Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone allows free installation of outdoor advertisements without regulations on size, location, or display methods, which is expected to bring various economic and public benefits such as fostering the advertising industry, expanding cultural and artistic content, and revitalizing the local economy. Generally, in South Korea, only one advertisement is allowed per building, and digital advertisements using electricity are subject to strict regulations on installation location, size, and display methods.

Songdo Convensia exterior view [Photo provided by Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority]

To select the Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone, the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority started related research in July and recently held a mid-term report meeting to discuss implementation strategies with related organizations such as Incheon City and Yeonsu District. The Authority plans to finalize the basic operation plan for outdoor advertising after a public hearing on the 23rd and the Incheon City Outdoor Advertising Deliberation Committee meeting next month, then submit it for the second round of screening.

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority's strategy is to emphasize that the Songdo Convensia area is a central district concentrated with transportation infrastructure such as urban rail and the Metropolitan Express Railway (GTX), as well as 5-star hotels, Lotte Mall, and E-Land Mall, and that it is a 'city planned for the future' with high potential value for fostering the advertising industry.

Kim Jin-yong, head of the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, said, "For the final selection of the Outdoor Advertising Free Display Zone, a strategy to secure marketability of the advertising industry through cooperation with building owners is necessary, and above all, active response and support from residents are important. We will do our best to prepare for the second round of screening so that the Songdo Convensia area can transform into the 'Korean version of Times Square' by being selected as a free display zone."

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