Google has unveiled plans to help support Internet entrepreneurs in Korea through a mentoring and investment program, according to a report from the Korea Herald.
The initiative, which forms part of the “Korea Go Global” plan, will see the Mountain View based search company offer support for local software and content developers with the aiming of building them to compete in global markets.
Google will select the projects to support from a pool of local initiatives in the country. From there, the firm will provide development funding and advice to enable Korean talent to learn from the experience and insights of the US company.
Today marks the final day of Google Chairman Erich Schmidt’s visit to South Korea. Before moving on to Taiwan, Schmidt will meet with a number of Korean operators and handset manufacturers as the company looks to develop Android’s position in Korea’s vibrant telecom market, which has seen almost 40 percent of the population become smartphone owners.
The weekend brought strong rumours that Google would set up its interest in acquiring Daum, Korea’s second largest search engine, however Schmidt ducked questions on the issue saying that “can’t talk about any acquisitions” at this stage.
Yesterday the company announced that it will work to develop a dedicated K-Pop YouTube service to help showcase Korea’s pop music across an international audience. The move is likely to see Google and YouTube’s visibility boosted in Korea, where it lives in the shadow of local services like Daum.
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