SEOUL– Google Korea on Friday announced the appointment of Yoon Koo, also known as Brandon Yoon, as its new country managing director, bringing in a seasoned technology executive with more than two decades of industry experience.
Yoon will assume the role on January 5 and will oversee Google Korea’s advertising sales operations, the company said. The appointment was reported by Yonhap News Agency.
Widely regarded as an industry veteran, Yoon has more than 20 years of experience across the South Korean and U.S. information technology and digital transformation sectors. He has previously held senior leadership roles at Microsoft Inc., Samsung Electronics Co., and Apple Korea.
“We expect Yoon’s extensive experience and leadership to help accelerate Google Korea’s future growth momentum,” the company said in a statement.
Yoon said he plans to focus on expanding Google’s artificial intelligence presence in South Korea, which he described as one of the world’s most dynamic and innovative markets.
“My mission is clear: to ensure Google is a true partner in Korea’s success,” he wrote in a post on LinkedIn.
“We will aggressively leverage the momentum of Gemini and AI to democratize growth, foster innovation, and empower our strategic customers spanning global conglomerates, small and mid-sized businesses and start-ups to achieve their greatest ambitions,” he added.
Separately, Google is set to introduce a lower-priced version of its YouTube Premium subscription in South Korea that excludes the music streaming service, the country’s antitrust regulator said on Thursday.
The move follows months of investigation by the Fair Trade Commission into allegations that Google’s bundling of YouTube Music with YouTube Premium violated fair trade rules. The new offering is part of a self-proposed corrective measure agreed upon by the U.S. technology company and the regulator.
Under the plan, Google will launch YouTube Premium Lite, a video-only subscription that offers ad-free viewing, background playback and offline access. Existing YouTube Premium and YouTube Music Premium subscriptions will remain available.
According to the Fair Trade Commission, YouTube Premium Lite is expected to be priced at 8,500 won ($5.80) per month for Android and web users, and 10,900 won per month for iOS users. The standard YouTube Premium plan currently costs 14,900 won per month, while YouTube Music is available separately for 11,990 won per month. (Source: IANS)
