The theme‑park “뽀로로앤타요” (likely a stylized name) opened in Jaeju, Seogwi‑po, and on the 17th it began calling its visitors “President of IDIE,” hoping to raise recognition. During that process, an incident occurred in which the character’s face was used without permission. The operator, the company Joo‑Sik, announced that it would not allow the use of intellectual property for commercial purposes and cut admission fees by half, declaring a restart.
Theme‑parks leveraging global IPs such as IDIE are attractive in terms of visitor flow and profitability. However, content that relies only on character recognition has difficulty retaining visitors. Because there is little staying‑type content such as plants or performances, many visitors finish after one visit. The same phenomenon can be seen at “Legoland” and “Marsoonland” (fictional names).
“Legoland” hit 30 % of its target visitors after opening in 2019 and did not meet expected profits, indicating that the content failed to remain continuously attractive. “Marsoonland” also invested billions of won but still has not grown long‑term.
The relationship between investors and operators heavily influences theme‑park management. For example, at “뽀로로앤타요,” one investor owns 4.16 % equity, yet the current share price is 0 won. In such a situation, strategies such as adjusting admission fees or proposing “minimum admission‑customer contract” are needed.
According to experts, regional theme‑parks must not only have play facilities but also include lodging and public‑use staying‑type tourism sites. If famous characters can attract visitors while securing repeat visits, content and services need continuous improvement; this is a new challenge for both investors and operators.