Obstacles and Opportunities for South Korean e-Commerce Companies: Implications for Global Competitiveness

The e-commerce market is currently one of the fastest growing global markets. Marketanalysts predict that the high rate of growth will remain steady through 2018. Of all regional markets that comprise the global e-commerce industry, the Asia Pacific region will experience the greatest growth. As a result, the Asia Pacific region will replace North America as the largest e-commerce market. While this holds great potential for domestic e-commerce companies in South Korea, there are several key obstacles that must first be overcome in order for South Korea to be truly competitive. Additionally, certain strengths within the domestic market can be leveraged to take advantage of market opportunities. In this paper, we will first explore current global e-commerce market trends and conditions. We will then enumerate both the obstacles and opportunities for South Korean e-commerce companies. It is vital that these obstacles are overcome in order to South Korean companies to maximize revenue and successfully become a global player. The final section will provide recommendations for possible solutions to these issues. These solutions are based on modern trends within the market as well the successful strategies that have been championed by both regional and global leaders.