Mr. A, an office worker in his 30s, has changed his online nationality three times this year. Although he lives in Korea, he used a virtual private network (VPN) to become an Indian, an Argentinian, and a Turkish citizen whenever he signed up for subscription services like YouTube Premium and Netflix. This is to reduce fixed expenses by taking advantage of monthly subscription price gaps ranging from thousands to tens of thousands of won between countries. As companies recently began blocking overseas bypass subscriptions, Mr. A's countermeasures have become increasingly sophisticated. He even figured out how to open a local App Store account or top up subscription fees with country-specific gift cards since payments with Korean credit cards are blocked. He is trying to act like a local not only in his connection country but also in his payment method.

The biggest factor behind this "digital immigration" phenomenon is the widening price gap of digital subscription platforms and services across countries. According to a comparison of major digital subscription fees in Korea, India, the Philippines, Turkey, and Argentina conducted by reporters on the 15th, the price difference by country exceeded a maximum of 7 times.

The YouTube Premium subscription plan costs 14,900 won per month in Korea, but is only 2,100 won (149 rupees) in India. That is a difference of about 153,600 won per year. It is around 4,100 won (189 pesos) in the Philippines and 3,300 won (119.99 liras) in Turkey.

Online video streaming services (OTT) and generative AI subscriptions are no exception. The Netflix Standard plan, which costs 13,500 won per month in Korea, is half that price at 7,100 won (499 rupees) in India. ChatGPT’s advanced paid plan, "ChatGPT Plus" (referred to as ChatGPT Pro 200 in the text), costs 299,000 won per month on the Korean Apple App Store and 214,400 won (9,990 pesos) on the Philippine App Store.

Another factor encouraging digital immigration is that the products available for selection differ depending on the country of residence. According to Google, Korea does not offer the YouTube Premium family plan, along with countries like Belarus, Iceland, Slovenia, and Venezuela. On the other hand, in India and the Philippines, up to six family members living in the same household can use a single subscription plan. In Korea, even family members must subscribe individually, which inevitably increases spending.

Domestic platforms sometimes utilize this phenomenon as an opportunity. If you join the Naver Plus Membership, you can use the Netflix Ad-supported Standard plan for 4,900 won, which is 2,100 won cheaper per month than subscribing directly. Baemin (Baedal Minjok) also sells bundled benefits of YouTube Premium and free delivery for 13,990 won per month, and telecom companies operate their own respective YouTube and Netflix subscription plans. It is a strategy to lock users into their own platforms instead of cutting subscription fees.

[ⓒ Global Economic Times. 무단전재-재배포 금지]