The Korea Times

What The Korea Times does

The Korea Times (한국일보) is a privately held media company founded in 1969, operating as one of Korea's oldest English-language daily newspapers and serving the Korean-American diaspora primarily in the United States and Canada. The company maintains its editorial and business headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, with a major U.S. regional headquarters in Los Angeles and additional regional editions across nine North American markets: New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Seattle, Philadelphia, Chicago, Atlanta, and Toronto. Its core editorial product spans bilingual (Korean and English) news coverage across society, economy, sports, entertainment, real estate, education, health, lifestyle, and opinion sections, delivered through a multi-platform architecture that includes the print newspaper, the koreatimes.com website, an electronic newspaper (epaper.koreatimes.com), a mobile application, and the Howdy Korea YouTube channel.

The company's product portfolio extends beyond core news publishing into community engagement and events. Radio Seoul (라디오서울 AM1650) provides Korean-language audio broadcasting; the Global Supporters program recruits international student ambassadors (50 students from 34 countries in its 4th cohort); the Korean Language Speaking Contest promotes Korean language learning globally; the Korea Times Forum convenes business and policy leaders; the Global Korea Awards recognizes multicultural contributors; and H Magazine serves as a lifestyle supplement. Content is additionally syndicated through partner platforms including Ktown1st.com, Naver Newsstand, and Seoul Economic Daily.

The Korea Times generates revenue through three primary streams: print and digital advertising sold across its regional editions and website, subscription and circulation revenue from print and digital subscribers, and event/program sponsorship and fees (notably from the Korea Times Forum, Global Korea Awards, Korean Language Speaking Contest, and Spring Concert). The customer base is diversified across individual readers and SMB advertisers across its nine regional markets, with no enterprise customer dependency. The company is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors, parent company, or funding rounds, and does not disclose revenue figures in available materials.

Name

The Korea Times

Legal name

The Korea Times

Website

https://koreatimes.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The Korea Times is a 1969-founded bilingual Korean-English newspaper and media company serving the Korean-American diaspora across nine U.S./Canadian regional editions, operating koreatimes.com, Radio Seoul AM1650, and the Howdy Korea YouTube channel, with revenue from advertising, subscriptions, and events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ethnic News Media

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Arts, Culture & Literary Magazines (MPAJAEAN)

Keywords

• Korean-American newspaper
• Bilingual news media
• Ethnic press publishing
• Digital news platform
• Regional news bureau

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Print and Digital Advertising: The newspaper generates revenue through print and digital advertising across its various sections including society, economy, sports, entertainment, real estate, education, health, and lifestyle. The website displays banner advertisements and sponsored content.
2. Subscription and Circulation: Revenue from newspaper subscriptions, both print and digital/e-paper formats. The company offers subscription services through its website.
3. Events and Programs: Revenue and sponsorships generated through hosted events including The Korea Times Forum, Global Korea Awards, Korean Language Speaking Contest, and Spring Concert.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Korea Times publishes a Korean-American English-language daily newspaper distributed in print across multiple U.S. metropolitan areas and via its website (koreatimes.com), e-paper (epaper.koreatimes.com), and mobile application. Its coverage spans society, economy, sports, entertainment, opinion, real estate, education, health, and lifestyle, supplemented by regional editions for Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Seattle, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Toronto, along with Radio Seoul AM1650, the Howdy Korea YouTube channel, and the H Magazine lifestyle supplement.

Product overview

The Korea Times is a Korean-American English-language daily newspaper and media company with a multi-platform news operation. The core offering is its news website (koreatimes.com) providing coverage across society, economy, sports, entertainment, opinion, and regional/local content. The company operates Radio Seoul (AM1650), a Korean-language radio station serving the Korean-American community. Supporting products include the Howdy Korea YouTube channel for digital content amplification, the Global Supporters ambassador program engaging international students, the annual Korean Language Speaking Contest, The Korea Times Forum for business/policy discussions, the Global Korea Awards recognizing multicultural contributions, and H Magazine for lifestyle and cultural content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Korea Times (Korean-American daily newspaper and website) Multi-edition bilingual (Korean and English) daily newspaper distributed in print across major U.S. metropolitan areas and globally via koreatimes.com. Covers society, economy, sports, entertainment, opinion, real estate, education, health, and lifestyle for Korean-American readers and English-speaking audiences interested in Korean affairs.
• Electronic Newspaper (E-Paper) Digital replica of the print newspaper accessible via epaper.koreatimes.com, enabling remote digital subscriptions and read-anywhere access for subscribers.
• Radio Seoul (AM1650) AM1650 Korean-language radio station broadcasting to Korean-American audiences in the United States, extending The Korea Times' content reach into audio media.
• Howdy Korea (YouTube Channel) YouTube video channel by The Korea Times providing English-language video content to amplify reporting, support community outreach, and extend digital reach.
• H Magazine (H 매거진) Lifestyle magazine supplement covering cultural content such as films, events, and lifestyle topics in South Korea, distributed as part of The Korea Times' brand.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Dunamu/UpbitminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 7 May 2026Dunamu, operator of Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, participated as a sponsor of The Korea Times Global Korea Awards. The Upbit Investor Protection Center director pledged continued support for multicultural youth initiatives promoted by The Korea Times.
• DECOCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Korea Times collaborates with DECOC (possibly a community organization) to support the Congolese community in Korea, demonstrating community engagement and multicultural outreach programs.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• World Journal (世界日報): Largest Chinese-language daily in the U.S., with multi-city regional editions serving the Chinese diaspora — highly comparable business model of print + digital + events targeting Asian-American readers and advertisers.
• La Opinión: The leading Spanish-language daily in Los Angeles serving the Hispanic-American community — directly comparable as a long-running, multi-platform ethnic newspaper anchored in Southern California competing for local ad budgets and community sponsorship.
• Sing Tao Daily (US edition): Long-running Chinese-American daily with regional U.S. editions targeting the Chinese diaspora — directly comparable as an Asian-American ethnic newspaper competing for similar advertiser dollars, real estate listings and community engagement.
• Korea Daily (US edition / 미주한국일보): The closest direct competitor to The Korea Times US edition — a Korean-language daily serving Korean-Americans across multiple U.S. regional editions with overlapping advertising, subscription and event revenue models.
• Epoch Times: A multi-platform U.S. ethnic newspaper (originally Chinese-language) that has expanded into digital and English — comparable as a diaspora-rooted publisher that has scaled aggressively into online video and English-language audiences.

Broad incumbents

• Dong-A Ilbo (English edition): Major Korea-based newspaper with English-language coverage serving international readers including Korean-Americans — comparable Korean-publisher-with-English-edition model, anchored primarily in the Korean domestic market.
• Chosun Ilbo (English edition): One of South Korea's largest newspapers with an English edition distributed internationally — comparable as a major Korean publisher with English-language diaspora-facing coverage, though with much broader Korea-domestic focus.
• Korea JoongAng Daily: Korea-based English-language daily affiliated with JoongAng Ilbo, producing English news for international and Korean-diaspora readers — comparable bilingual coverage model though anchored in Korea rather than U.S. metros.
• Asahi Shimbun (US operations): Japan's largest newspaper with English-language international coverage and U.S. readership — comparable as an Asian national publisher with English international editions and overlapping diaspora-language readership dynamics.
• Korea Herald: Korea's flagship English-language daily, distributing English coverage of Korea to international audiences including the Korean diaspora — overlaps with The Korea Times' English-language audience but is headquartered in Seoul and broadly national rather than U.S.-diaspora focused.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/koreatimes
• Facebookfacebook.com/koreatimes

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Korea Times