(14 May 2026) South Korea’s public libraries have exceeded 1,300 nationwide, while annual visits topped 230 million, reflecting improved access and rising use. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Library Association said that the number of public libraries stood at 1,328 as of end-2025, up 2.5 percent from a year earlier.…
(7 May 2026) A partial amendment to the Library Act, which excludes “one-click publications” rapidly produced using generative artificial intelligence (AI) from library deposit requirements, passed the National Assembly plenary session on Monday. Under the current law, even publications created with AI are subject to the deposit system, under which the National Library of Korea…
(12 Jan 2026) The National Library of Korea is opening up its national bibliographic data, previously used only by experts, to the general public and private companies. The National Library of Korea announced on the 12th that it will develop an OpenAPI service based on the National Bibliographic Linked Open Data (LOD) through the…
(17 Nov 2025) More than 200 academic papers in South Korea have been retracted over suspicions that artificial intelligence was improperly used to reproduce content from ChatGPT. Following a series of AI-assisted cheating cases at major universities, including Seoul National University, the recent confirmation of widespread AI-assisted paper-writing allegations has raised concerns about an emerging…
(14 Oct 2025) In a recent interview with Yonhap News Agency, Kim Hee-sop, director of the National Library of Korea, said, “Now is the time when the value of libraries becomes even clearer, as AI becomes more naturally integrated into everyday life.” “AI requires high-quality, diverse datasets to improve performance,” Kim said. “Libraries are…
(2 Oct 2025) A new university rankings system in South Korea – its first ever national rankings – is strongly weighted towards internationalization to provide objective information to foreign students looking to study in the country. The Korea Times, the nation’s oldest English-language daily, released its first K-universities Global Excellence Rankings on 24 September.…
(22 Sep 2025) After a summer break during the peak heat, the Seoul Outdoor Library will reopen on September 5 and run through November 2, the city government announced Thursday. The library will operate evenings (4 p.m. to 10 p.m.) throughout September before shifting to daytime hours (11 a.m. to 6 p.m.) in late October as…
(21 Jul 2025) Our House Library (Udo), the largest book-sharing service in Korea, surpassed 3 million cumulative books in five years after the service was launched. Udo is a non-face-to-face book-sharing service that delivers books entrusted by members to the home of applicants, with an annual volume of about 1.2 million copies. This is about 300,000…
(22 Jul 2025) The 99th World Library and Information Congress (IFLA WLIC 2026) will mark IFLA’s return to South Korea, two decades after the successful WLIC 2006 in Seoul. The Korean Library Association secured a strong and compelling bid to welcome the global library community. The Conference will be held at the Busan Exhibition and…
(3 Jul 2025) Seoul’s outdoor libraries drew a record-breaking 1 million visitors during the first half of 2025, reflecting a growing cultural shift that celebrates reading as a lifestyle trend — especially among younger generations. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the three key outdoor reading spaces — Seoul Plaza Library, Gwanghwamun Book Yard, and…