UN-Habitat Korean committee holds seminar on platform economy

Experts have discussed the current status and direction of the platform economy as part of policy seminar series of “The Digital Age, the Road to the Cooperative Economy of Korea” organized by the UN-Habitat Korean National Committee on Wednesday. 

In this seminar, experts from each field participated in resolving the monopoly on platform profits and legislating. They discussed regulations on “dinosaur” platforms for two hours and policy recommendations for platform workers and consumers.

Rep. Kim Jong-min of the Democratic Party, pointed out in a greeting that “anti-trust regulations are needed to restore competitive functions in the digital economy.”

“Given that platform workers are unstable in legal status as private business operators, it is necessary to improve their legal status through legislation that classifies them as workers,” he said.

Kang Sung-ho, head of the international cooperation team of the Financial Services Commission, said that the platform is a “referee” that makes rules, and pointed out that the fair competition order collapses as the platform plays as a player.

He predicted that to establish a fair order suitable for the platform economy, bolder social discussions such as social insurance and financial products for platform workers are needed, along with the separation of platform and the industry.

Presenter Park Hee-deok, CEO of Translink Investment, cited two positive effects of the platform industry: industry‘s innovation-led capabilities and improving consumer benefits.

He proposed a “participating cooperative economic system” in which users create and follow their own rules as an alternative to improving the negative effects of “deepening monopoly and polarization” while enjoying these positive effects.

The UN-Habitat Korean National Committee, which was the seminar’s organizer, is responsible for sharing and transferring Korea‘s urban development experience to the international community and maximizing the effectiveness of global partnerships in the urban sector.