• Cartoon and Animation Studies
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• s.6
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• pp.152-171
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• 2002

This study analyses the avatar service, which is recognized as an alternative strategy of animation industry. The research questions of this study are following: (1) How have the avatar services been developed and what are the present dominant types? (2) Which structural characteristics of e-business environment are needed for the success of avatar services? (3) What is the economic characteristics of avatar business model? To solve these research questions, the basic conditions and the structural characteristics of avatar services have been investigated. In the first place, two forms of avatar service are classified. One is the internet service site whole primary service is to provide chatting service based on avatar service. The other is the portal site in which many kinds of products and services are presented as bundles to meet the needs of internet users. So avatar service is one of bundles which those portal sites are providing with. In this study, the big five internet service sites are selected based on the profits they earned through the sales of avatar service. The result of analysis is that the pricing strategy of those big five sites is very different from those of traditional off-line markets. The pricing mechanism are based on the value which internet users endow with the avatar items, not based on the costs of making the products. Avatar is the representative informative goods. The informative goods have the original cost structures, constant fixed costs and zero marginal costs, so the providers of avatar services make much of the subjective values of consumers. The sayclub, which is the most successful avatar service site and earn the average sales of 3 billing won a month, takes the aggressive strategy of pricing avatar items at highest price in the industry. The avatar service providers which make lots of profits are planning of making differentiate the services, introducing well-known brand items and star-named items. Nevertheless, the fact that the members of the sayclub are not decreasing means that the network effect of the site is so strongly manifest. Moreover, the costs the members have paid for the avatar items are so big not as to switch from one site to the other site, it can be very costly. These switching costs are endemic in high-technology industries and digital contents industries. It can be so large that switching suppliers is virtually unthinkable, a situation known as 'lock-in'. When switching costs are substantial, competition can be intense to attract new customers, since, one they are locked in, they can be a substantial source of profit. The consumers of avatar items have switching costs if they subscribe for the new avatar service site. The switching costs can be subscription costs as well as the costs of giving up the items they already paid for. One common example of switching costs involves specialized supplies, as with inkjet printer cartridges. In this example, the switching cost is the purchase of a new printer. The market is competitive ex ante, but since cartridges are incompatible, it is monopolized dx post. So the providers of printer/cartridges set pricing printer so cheap and cartridges expensive. On the contrary, since the avatar service can be successful with the strong network effect, the providers of avatar services have to compete aggressively for new customers. So they allow the subscription at a low price(almost marginal cost) in the early market. The network effect can be maximized when the members are sufficiently growing. The providers which have the monopoly power with sufficient subscribers. begin to raise the prices over the lifetime of the product and make profits.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.63-74
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• 2008

With the awareness that Sinyeongwol Sipgyeong(ten scenic spots in Yeongwol) were designed too hastily and only for PR purposes after the change in the tourism environment, this paper indicates that most tourism and culture sources in Yeongwol are related to King Danjong, the sixth king of the Joseon Dynasty. This study proposes a 'Storytelling Plan' for the landscape content called 'Cultural Landscapes - Yeongwol Palgyeong(eight scenic spots in Yeongwol)' after reviewing types and content of Yeongwol Palgyeong through the halo effect of the well-known sad history of King Danjong and the cultural value of Yeongwol. The significance of the unity of the historic site and neighboring landscape is focused on by investigating the anaphoric relations between cultural landscape texts('Yeongwol Palgyeong') and historic content(the sad history of King Danjong). For this, the cultural lnddscape of Yeongwol has been framed and layered to make spatial texts. To emphasize the 'Telling' as well as the 'Story,' interesting episodes have been reviewed to discover a motive. To diversify the 'Telling' methods, absorptive landscape factors have been classified as 'Place,' 'Object' and 'Visual Point.' In addition the storytelling of Yeongwol Palgyeong was examined in consideration of the story and background of 'Yeongwol Palgyeong - Sad Story of King Danjong' and the interaction of a variety of cultural content by suggesting micro-content such as infotainment and edutainment as absorptive landscape factors. In order to make the storytelling plan available in practice as an alternative plan for Yeongwol Tourism, a visual point should be properly set to make the landscape look sufficiently dynamic. In addition, real landscape routes and narration scenarios should be prepared as well. Professional landscape interpreters who are well informed of the natural features of Yeongwol and the history of King Danjong should be brought into the project, and Internet and digital technology-based strategies should be developed.

• Cartoon and Animation Studies
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• s.20
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• pp.75-86
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• 2010

Recently, as the number of female players has increased rapidly, the electronic gaming industry has begun to look at ways to appeal to the largely untapped female market. According to the latest game market investigative report by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), the total number of game players in China increased by 24.8% in 2009, reached 69,130,000 people, and 38.9% of them are female players. This growth in the number of female player is corroborated by a series of investigative reports from IResearch Company in Shanghai, China: from 2003 to 2009, the number of female players grew from 8% to more than 49%. Therefore, no matter how much attention the game production companies have given to male players or how they have ignored the female players before, the companies would be sensible to face up this reality and adjust their marketing policy a bit more. This article analyzes gender preferences in video games which shows that male players are more likely to be attracted to elements of aggression, violence, competition and fast action in electronic game-playing, while female players are drawn to emotional and social aspects of the games such as an understanding of character relationships. The literatures cited indicates that female players also show apparent preference for games with familiar environments, games that allow players to work together, games that have more than one way to win, and games in which characters do not die. It also discusses the characteristics of female-friendly games from the aspect of emotion, pointing out that the simulation games involving pet, dressing-up, and social simulation games are very popular with female players. Because these are the most suitable game types to fill with emotions of love, share, jealousy, superiority, mystery, these are absolutely attractive to female players. Finally, in accord with the above, I propose some principles of designing female-oriented games, including presenting a good-looking leading character, making the story interesting with "live" NPCs(Non-Playing Characters), and finding ways to satisfy female nature instincts such as taking care of others and the inborn interest of classifying and selecting.