Twitter plans expansion in South Korea

PanARMENIAN.Net - Twitter plans to drive growth in South Korea by zeroing in on localized features and expanding partnerships with companies and celebrities, a company official said Thursday, Oct 11, according to Yonhap.

"Korea is a place where we think there are a lot of partnership opportunities on very different scales. Obviously, there are opportunities for partnerships with major handset makers such as Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., who are two key players," Othman Laraki, Twitter's vice president of Growth, International and Revenue, told a press conference.

The executive said South Korea's depth of Internet penetration and robust online population make the country one of the most important markets for the San Fransisco-based firm. "It is also a country where we've seen a lot of early adopters that have taken to Twitter in a very energetic way and we don't necessarily see that in all countries."

In efforts to increase its growth within South Korea, Twitter plans to step up its local operation. “The company, which started a Korean-language service in 2011, has set up a local unit and is in the process of recruitment,” Laraki said.

He said Twitter also plans to introduce localized features such as a Korean-language version of "Trends," which shows popular topics across different fields in real-time.

Laraki added the company plans to launch a hashtag (#) for the South Korean presidential election in December, which is expected to help commentators as well as the general public more easily see "tweets" about the vote.