AdAsia 2023 Seoul closed successfully

Asia's largest advertising and digital marketing festival, AdAsia 2023 Seoul (Organizing Committee Chairman Nakhoe Kim), came to a successful conclusion on the 27th with a closing ceremony at COEX, Samsung-dong, Seoul, South Korea.

Organized by the Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA), hosted by the Korea Association of National Advertisers, and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and the Seoul Metropolitan Government, 'AdAsia 2023 Seoul' lasted for four days, starting with the Eve Festival on the 24th, followed by the official opening ceremony on the 25th, and the closing ceremony on the 27th, with more than 2,600 participants from 27 countries around the world, making it the largest AdAsia ever.

According to the AdAsia 2023 Seoul Organizing Committee, the event marked a significant milestone in several ways. First of all, in terms of scale, it was the largest AdAsia ever, having been held 33 times in 65 years.

A total of 2,600 domestic and foreign participants, including 540 overseas participants, participated in the event, and the venue was filled with enthusiasm as a total of 70 sessions, including conferences on six themes such as redefining the advertising industry, the future of creativity, media changes, competitiveness of K-advertising, adtech, and digital out-of-home (DOOH), as well as casual open stages centered on real-life cases such as trends, digital & adtech, case studies of excellent advertising campaigns, and entertainment, and an international academic conference attended by six advertising-related societies, were held nonstop.

A highly anticipated discussion on the redefinition of the Ouf of Home Advertising industry was also held under the theme of 'DOOH'.

Mr. Tom Goddard, President of the World Out of Home Organization(WOO), gave a presentation on the topic of 'Trends, Issues and Future of the Global Out of Home Advertising Market'.

Tom Goddard said, "Globally, the share of out-of-home advertising in total advertising spend has been hovering around 5% in recent years. I call it the 5% syndrome. In Korea, it's around 6-7%, which is good, but we're not satisfied, and together with you, we need to get it up to 10%. The out-of-home media deserves it."

The next speaker, Andreas Soupliotis, CEO of HiveStack, spoke about the potential of the Korean programmatic out-of-home market in his talk 'The next programmatic opportunity in Korea'.

Andreas Soupliotis said "When I first entered Korea, very few people knew about the programmatic OOH business, and today I estimate that programmatic OOH transactions account for about 1% of the market. In the next three years, when I visit Korea again, it will be more than 20%."

And moderated by Kim Dae-won, CEO of Podo Media, Jun Sakura, CEO of Liveboard, and Andreas Soupliotis, CEO of HiveStack, held a panel discussion on the current state and development of audience measurement in the Korean OOH market.

Finally, Mr. Park Hyun, Director of Hyundai FutureNet, reviewed the history and current state of outdoor advertising design in Korea on the topic of 'Digital Signage Creating Socially Responsive Spaces'.

A professor of advertising who attended the seminar said, "I have attended many advertising seminars and conferences, but this is the first time I have seen the outdoor advertising sector so well prepared as at AdAsia. I was impressed by the panel discussions of outdoor advertising experts from around the world. I realized the changed status of the Korean outdoor advertising industry.

As new areas of advertising expand in the digital age, it is necessary to redefine advertising, and the current statistical survey of the advertising industry (advertising expenditure) does not include these new types of advertising, so it is inevitable to revise the classification system. This is the first time that AdAsia has discussed a new definition of advertising in the rapidly changing global advertising environment, and it is evaluated to have contributed significantly to raising the status of K-advertising.

In terms of quality, presidents from global top-tier groups such as Google, Meta, WOO, Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor, and Cheil Worldwide participated as speakers and shared their insights on mega trends in brands and media.

The greatest interest was in the predictions and responses of global companies to advertising and marketing in the era of generative AI, which generated a lot of in-depth questions from attendees after the sessions.

On the creative side, Steven Moy, CEO of Barbarian Group, USA, and Wesley T. Ha, co-founder of Media Monks, Europe, discussed how creatives will survive in the age of AI, while Joe Jackson, CEO of D&AD, the world's leading advertising awards, and Kevin Swanepoel, CEO of One Show, led workshops on the next generation of creatives and creativity, deeply inspiring creative directors, marketers, and aspiring creatives at home and abroad.

Another pillar of the conference is K-Culture. Lee Hoon-hee, CEO of Starship Entertainment, creator of MONSTA X and IVE, Song Seung-hwan, director of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics and organizer of Nanta, and K-content marketing examples from Coca-Cola and McDonald's drew large crowds, reflecting the interest in global marketing utilizing K-content.

In addition, the Business Showcase exhibition, which was held for the first time at AdAsia Seoul, featured 30 companies and 50 booths related to advertising and Ad-Tech, providing an opportunity for practical business consultations between countries.

The Changemakers for Good Awards (CMG Awards), which recognize organizations (companies) and individuals who are leading the way in world-changing communications with creative ideas, and the Asia Young Creators' Award (AYCA), a creative competition for Asian university students to compete on the theme of Seoul city branding (Seoul, My Soul), were also held for the first time at AdAsia Seoul. More than 100 entries from over 20 countries were submitted for the AYCA, and the final 12 entries-20 students-were invited to the event to receive a visit from the Seoul Metropolitan Government and an award from the Mayor of Seoul.

AdAsia 2023 Seoul was differentiated in that it consisted of a variety of programs including conferences, exhibitions, awards, competitions, and workshops, unlike the usual conference-centric events in the past. It was also differentiated in that it provided an environment for active on-site networking and new business creation between countries and companies in the fields of IT/tech, gaming, automotive, and F&B, beyond advertising, marketing, and communication.

"AdAsia 2023 Seoul was an event that externally demonstrated Korea's leadership in the Asian advertising industry, and internally provided an opportunity to redefine the advertising industry in the digital age, raising the status of the industry and the pride of advertisers," said Kim Nak-ho, chairman of the organizing committee. "This competition will not only energize domestic digital marketing and content companies to expand overseas, but will also help brand the country and attract the 2030 Busan Expo."

Meanwhile, in two years' time, the 34th edition of AdAsia 2025 will be held in Macau.