Korea widens K-book export push at Frankfurt Book Fair

The culture ministry said Wednesday it will support Korean publishers at the Frankfurt Book Fair this week, opening a rights-negotiation centre for 15 Korean companies and a first dedicated booth for books chosen under its K-Book Global 100 project.

The fair runs from Oct. 7 to 11 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. At the 120-square-metre export consultation centre, publishers including Munhakdongne, The Pinkfong Company, Moonpia, Mirae N, Book21, Kinderland and Changbi will present literature, picture books and web novels to overseas publishers and agencies. A further 103 titles from publishers that cannot attend in person will be exhibited separately, with a professional agency handling rights talks on their behalf.

The K-Book Global 100 booth, 30 square metres and operating for the first time, will present 89 titles from 20 publishers and agencies selected for the project, among them Munji Publishing, Minumsa, Sakyejul, Changbi, Wisdom House and Safe House.

Three participating companies, Angraphic, Woori School and TCA Agency, will take part in an investment pitching event at 10 a.m. on Oct. 9, presenting their titles and works directly to overseas publishing executives.

For the first time, the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea, the Korea Creative Content Agency and the Literature Translation Institute of Korea are running a joint Korean pavilion under the theme Crossroads of Stories. The three bodies, which previously ran separate promotional spaces overseas, will present literature, humanities, picture books, web novels and webtoons together.

On Oct. 8, the ministry and the Korean Cultural Centre Germany will hold an exchange event for publishers at 4 p.m., drawing publishing figures from Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan and elsewhere.

Last year's fair drew more than 4,350 institutions and publishers from 131 countries, with about 238,000 visitors including 120,000 members of the general public. Korean publishers held a total of 299 rights consultations with overseas counterparts at the 2025 export centre.

"This Frankfurt Book Fair is an important opportunity to show the world publishing market the diversity and competitiveness of Korean publishing content and to produce tangible business results," said Kim Jae-hyun, director of the culture ministry's Culture and Media Industry Office. He added that the ministry will strengthen on-site support so that Korean publishing intellectual property can generate sustained value in global markets.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is running the programme with the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea.