After getting an overwhelming response from South Korean and Chinese audience, the hit TV drama Descendants of the Sun will be premiered in Japan on Japanese satellite TV channel Eisei Gekijo in June.
The deal for the broadcasting rights for the Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo starrer was sealed in March and it has been sold for over AU$120,000 per episode, according to sources.
In the last three years, Japanese broadcasting companies were a bit hesitant to spend on Korean shows but this will be a positive development for the South Korean drama series to boost its market in Japan.
According to Soompi, the downfall of Korean dramas in Japan started in 2012 with the economic failure of Jang Geun-suk's Love Rain. The series was bought for over AU$380,000 per episode but it failed to meet its expectations. As a result of that, the export rates for dramas dropped below the mark of AU$120,000. But Descendants of the Sun has raised the scene of South Korean dramas from that trough.
This series is also being currently broadcast in HongKong through Viu TV. But not only in Korea and HongKong, this show has created an army of ardent followers across the globe. The military-themed romantic story from KBS 2TV drama series has also won millions of hearts.
One of the songs of this drama has also featured the Genesis sedan manufactured by Hyundai Motor Co. and the Company has revealed that they have received a number of inquiries from China regarding the car. That particular scene has actually portrayed the self-driving abilities of the Hyundai Genesis which has actually increased buyers' interest.
Grace Wang, 23, told Straits Times: ""I would like to have a car that can go by itself like I saw in the show, it is so cool."
Sources reveal that through video streaming site iqiyi.com, Descendants of the Sun has already earned over 2.6 billion views in China.
