Trend Report
5th Week of September
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1. idea of the week
1. idea of the week
<"present" korea to your friends & family!>
<"present" korea to your friends & family!>
- Stamps
Stamps are always a great present for those who love to travel and meet different cultures! Stamps are not as commonly used as back in the early 21st century, but still it would work as a great present representing Korean culture, as each of them contain important cultural or historical features of Korea. There are even stamps with Kakaofriends'! They are about 30 cents for each, and you can purchase them at the official Korean postal service website(https://service.epost.go.kr/stamp.RetrievePostagGoodsList.postal?svctype=1&timediv=2000&targetRow=1). Unfortunately, this page does not provide English, but you could still use the Google translation service and check out many designs!
- Korean name seals
Every Korean has their own names seals, called "도장(do-jang)" in Korean, as we use it instead of signing important documents. Below is an excerpt from a district office in Korea regarding the registered name seals: “In Korea, a registered seal impression and Certificate of Seal Impression are necessary to carry out financial transactions (sales of real estate, bank loan, etc.). The seal used for such transactions must be identical with the registered seal. The seal protects its owner's legal rights and property. Only one seal can be registered and the seal cannot be replicated. Loss and negligence of the registered seal can incur serious consequences. Seals should not be lent carelessly. Foreigners can carry out business in Korea by owning registered seals.”
You can create your own name seal in Insadong area, where they sell hand-carved seals for foreign tourists. However, seals sold in those areas are quite expensive, starting from $30-50. Koreans usually get their name seals at local supermarkets such as E-mart or Lotte mart, in which are stores that sell cheap seals made by carving machines. The seal itself is a part of authentic Korean culture, so check them out if you have a low budget!
- Korean alcohol
There are three types of popular alcohol in Korea, which are beer, soju and makgeolli. Among them, soju and makgeolli are the two types of drink that you could only find in Korea. Soju is traditionally made from rice, wheat, or barley. In recent years, soju producers have come out with a variety of flavored options, such as grape, grapefruit, citrus and peach. Soju glass is also a great souvenir to bring back home, as it kind of looks similar to shot glasses, but totally different and unique! Makgeolli is basically rice wine, and is made from 'nuruk', which is a dry cake of wheat, barley, and rice that hosts a variety of wild yeasts, bacteria, and koji mold spores; these go to work on cooked sweet rice, turning starches into simple sugars then into alcohol over the course of a week. Unpasteurized, these tiny powerhouses will allow the beverage to further mature in the bottle, coaxing complex enzymes and flavor compounds from a drink that beautifully complements the spicy, sweet, sour, and savory notes so prevalent in Korean cooking.
Soju and Makgoelli cost only about $2 in supermarkets, but in foreign countries, the prices increases up to even $30!! Make sure to bring some back home when you have the chance to visit Korea later, as they are much cheaper here! (Be careful. Since Makgeolli is a fermented drink, it might explode!!)
<youtube tips>
<youtube tips>
- Amazing editing applications that you could use on your smartphone!
#1 VLLO
VLLO is the most similar form to Priemere Pro and Final Cut Pro. This is because images can be cut or moved in frames. In addition, the various transition effects in the application can add uniqueness to the video. Note that 'VLLO' allows you to delete the watermark for free!
#2 Kinemaster
Kinemaster is an app that can be used on PCs as well as on smartphones. It is so easy to use that even elementary school students can use it! This app allows you to use almost all of its functions free of charge, but if you pay, you can use more than 1,000 different templates. You also have to pay to remove the watermark. If you're having a hard time editing videos and you're thinking about whether to shoot a Vlog or not, don't hesitate to start with this app. It's only a matter of time before you become an expert in video production!
<k-pop>
<k-pop>
- September K-pop Schedule
- October K-pop Schedule
The Mnet Asian Music Awards (hereafter MAMA) has revealed information on this year’s ceremony! 2020 MAMA will take place in Korea and be held as an “untact” (non face-to-face contact) ceremony for the first time. A representative of CJ ENM commented, “Asia’s greatest music awards show MAMA has always advanced with innovative attempts. We also think of this year’s untact ceremony as a new opportunity. Based on the technical skills and know-how that we have built up over time, we will prepare the greatest performances so [MAMA] can shine as the greatest global music festival true to its name.” 2020 MAMA is set to be held on December 6. Stay tuned for updates!
“I-LAND” group ENHYPEN is officially gearing up for their debut! On September 18, Mnet’s “I-LAND” announced the final lineup for the upcoming boy group ENHYPEN through its live finale. ENHYPEN is the first group ever to be produced by BELIF+, a joint venture between CJ ENM and Big Hit Entertainment. BELIF+ has now confirmed that ENHYPEN is currently aiming to debut before the end of 2020, and on September 19, the company released a pre-debut promotion schedule (found below) that reveals what fans can look forward to from the group for the month of September. ENHYPEN has also unveiled a logo teaser and launched brand-new social media accounts, both of which you can check out now!
<k-FOOD>
<k-FOOD>
This is probably the easiest dish that has ever been introduce in the Trend Report. It only requires three ingredients: Potato, potato starch and cheese. “호떡(hotteok)” is a type of snack that Koreans enjoy eating in the winter, especially on the streets. It is a type of street food, which you can get for less than a dollar for one. The most common type of hotteok has brown sugar and nuts inside, while this special recipe puts cheese inside. This type of hotteok could be served as a full meal, as it is made from potatoes. Make sure to check out this recipe, as it’s really easy. Why don’t you cook this for your family, as a way of “presenting Korea” to them? Also, don’t forget to visit this channel, “하루한끼 one meal a day”, as it has tons of easy Korean food recipes! J As a Korean, I assure you, they are all quite authentic!
<k-fashion>
<k-fashion>
Don't you get frustrated when you go all the way to the city, looking for the right outfit and find yourself not satisfied and returning home empty-handed? I have the solution to that problem. I've got a list of the top 5 online shopping platforms that are trending in Korea. Get ready to binge shop!
First up is Zigzag. The number 1 women's shopping mall app in Korea. This app ranks online shopping malls and sorts them out in categories. Each online shopping mall has its own style and looks written below their link. There are major brands and minor brands, some you might not have heard of. One really cool thing about this app is that you can purchase all your clothes through this app. You don't have to make an account for each shopping mall. There are some shopping malls that will deliver overseas too so check and see which ones will ship items to your doorstep!
Next up, StyleShare. When it comes to fashion in Korea, we are always a step ahead. This site not only sells clothes but other things like cosmetics, shoes, accessories and more. You can create your own wardrobe and add the clothes you'd like to buy inside. Also, share your outfits to others and follow other fashion lovers. There are many discounts and offers.
A unique thing about this app is that it has a secondhand market! You can buy other people's clothes at a cheap price or upload your own clothes and make some money by selling them. If you get lucky, you can stumble upon your desired clothes and get an excellent deal. So keep a lookout!
ABLY was the hottest online shopping mall in the past year. This was because many famous Korean YouTubers ran sponsored ads for them. They advertised saying they deliver 365 days, and wouldn't charge for your shipping even when you order just one item! From time to time, they had limited-time discounts on products which were a bargain.
BRANDI also delivers 365 days without shipping cost and as long as you complete your order before 2pm, you will receive it the next day. This online shopping mall could be a great place for working women in their 20s. As the clothes here are simple and not flashy, so you get a good balance of casual and mature.
Last but not least is MUSINSA! Among the 5 online shopping malls, MUSINSA is the only online mall for both genders. Like StyleShare they sell all sorts of things, and I think this is a great place for couples to buy their clothes as they could match or get similar-looking clothes.
3. Weekly Trending SEarches
3. Weekly Trending SEarches
- korea
#1 lok 플로브 디프 대 토트넘 (Lokomotiv Plovdiv. vs. Tottenham)
#2 오인혜 (Oh In-hye)
#3 오인혜 사망 (The death of actress Oh In-hye)
#4 학교 폭력 실태 조사 (Survey on the school bullying)
#5 바르셀로나 대 지로나 (Barcelona vs. Girona)
#6 윤지오 (Youn Ji-oh)
#7 오인혜 드레스 (Oh In-hye's dress)
#8 kia 대 삼성 (Kia vs. Samsung)
#9 반올림 피자샵 (Ban-Ol-lim Pizza)
#10 보스턴 대 마이애미 (Boston vs. Miami)
4. GLOBAL TREND REPORT
4. GLOBAL TREND REPORT
On Friday, it looked like the US was ready to ban new downloads of TikTok and WeChat, two popular China-based apps that the Trump administration warned posed security threats to American users. The Commerce Department issued an order that would have prohibited new downloads as of Sunday. And on Saturday WeChat in particular saw a sharp uptick in new installs in the US, according to analytics platform Sensor Tower, with an 800 percent week-over-week increase.
But as of Sunday afternoon, each has received a reprieve from a US ban, at least temporarily. President Trump said Saturday he had given a deal between TikTok, Oracle, and Walmart his “blessing,” prompting a one-week delay from the Commerce Department on TikTok’s ban. And a judge in California issued a preliminary injunction blocking the administration’s WeChat ban.
The TikTok deal appears to be a far cry from the Trump administration’s original demand for a full sale of TikTok’s US operations. Oracle becomes a “trusted tech partner,” and will host all US user data, securing “associated computer systems.” Both Oracle and Walmart will take part in a TikTok Global pre-IPO financing round in which they can take up to a 20 percent cumulative stake in the new company, TikTok Global, according to TikTok. On Monday, ByteDance said it will own 80 percent of TikTok Global and the plan “does not involve the transfer of any algorithms,” according to The Guardian.
The deal has yet to be finalized, and some of the details remained a bit fuzzy as of Sunday morning. While all parties said the new company would be headquartered in the US and bring 25,000 jobs, the president’s statement that the deal included a $5 billion donation toward US education seemed a surprise to TikTok parent company ByteDance. On Monday, Bytedance contested Trump’s description in a blog post titled “clarifying groundless rumors about TikTok” saying the “so-called tax payment of $5 billion to the US Treasury” was simply an estimate of the corporate taxes TikTok Global would pay over several years if the venture is successful.
Nevertheless, for now, the Commerce Department has delayed any TikTok ban until September 27th.
For WeChat, the future in the US is even more uncertain. Judge Laurel Beeler wrote in her order that an August lawsuit by a group of WeChat users showed “serious questions going to the merits of the First Amendment claim.” Beeler wrote that the plaintiffs’ “evidence reflects that WeChat is effectively the only means of communication for many in the community, not only because China bans other apps, but also because Chinese speakers with limited English proficiency have no options other than WeChat.”
Beeler added that while the US government had identified “significant” threats to national security, there was “scant little evidence that its effective ban of WeChat for all US users addresses those concerns.”
The Commerce Department had not commented on Judge Beeler’s order as of Sunday afternoon.
YouTube says it’s bringing back human moderators who were “put offline” during the pandemic after the company’s AI filters failed to match their accuracy.
Back in March, YouTube said it would rely more on machine learning systems to flag and remove content that violated its policies on things like hate speech and misinformation. But YouTube told the Financial Times this week that the greater use of AI moderation had led to a significant increase in video removals and incorrect take downs.
Around 11 million videos were removed from YouTube between April and June, says the FT, or about double the usual rate. Around 320,000 of these take downs were appealed, and half of the appealed videos were reinstated. Again, the FT says that’s roughly double the usual figure: a sign that the AI systems were over-zealous in their attempts to spot harmful content.
As YouTube’s chief product officer, Neal Mohan, told the FT: “One of the decisions we made [at the beginning of the pandemic] when it came to machines who couldn’t be as precise as humans, we were going to err on the side of making sure that our users were protected, even though that might have resulted in [a] slightly higher number of videos coming down.”
This admission of failure is notable. All major online social platforms, from Twitter to Facebook to YouTube, have been increasingly under pressure to deal with the spread of hateful and misleading content on their sites. And all have said that algorithmic and automated filters can help deal with the immense scale of their platforms.
Time and time again, though, experts in AI and moderation have voiced skepticism about these claims. Judging whether a video about, say, conspiracy theories contains subtle nods toward racist beliefs can be a challenge for a human, they say, and computers lack our ability to understand the exact cultural context and nuance of these claims. Automated systems can spot the most obvious offenders, which is undoubtedly useful, but humans are still needed for the finer judgment calls.
Even with more straightforward decisions, machines can still mess up. Back in May, for example, YouTube admitted that it was automatically deleting comments containing certain phrases critical of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The company later blamed an “error with our enforcement systems” for the mistakes.
But as Mohan told the FT, the machine learning systems definitely have their place, even if it is to just remove the most obvious offenders. “Over 50 percent of those 11 million videos were removed without a single view by an actual YouTube user and over 80 percent were removed with less than 10 views,” he said. “And so that’s the power of machines.”
*Thank you for reading this week's trend report. Please let us know if you have any questions or opinions on our trend report! :) *
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