Korean culture rides in on mobile technology

Korean actor Kim Soohyun. File photo.

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Flanked by a DJ and a drummer, South Korean pop group Exo sauntered onto the stage at the Hunan Satellite TV station on Friday, joining the line-up for the Lantern Festival Show. The studio was flooded with fans holding light sticks in various colors, signifying allegiance to one or other group member.

On the same day, thousands of kilometers away at Shanghai's Pudong International Airport, the arrival of heartthrob Lee Min-ho, who starred in the TV series The Heirs, attracted a hardcore of young women willing to pay 3,800 yuan ($626) to access his half-hour media briefing.

"I'm totally attracted by his slim figure, chiseled abs and perfect complexion," said Li Min, a primary school teacher in Shanghai, who rushed to the scene for her dearest "oppa", a respectful Korean term used by women to refer to older males.

The popularity of the mobile Internet has helped to promote the phenomenon of Hallyu - or the wave of South Korean culture flooding other countries. Live concerts and entertainment shows become immediately available to thousands of die-hard fans who discuss endlessly the whereabouts of their favorite celebrities.