Education new hope for Asia Internet TV firms

By Rhee So-eui - Analysis

SEOUL (Reuters) - You can spend thousands of dollars and endless hours in crowded lecture halls to gain a South Korean real estate agent's certificate.

Or you could study for the license in the comfort of your own room with a broadband connection to a TV for a fraction of the cost.

For companies selling interactive TV over the Internet, Asia's surging demand for high quality education for kids to career changers offers up potentially lucrative market and the chance to lure customers away from cable TV and the computer.

South Korea -- where children spend hours studying in a grueling battle to enter the top schools that can guarantee a job at the big conglomerates -- is at the vanguard in Asia of educational television over the Internet.

Tuition is expensive, with spending on after-school tutoring estimated to be worth 2.6 percent of the country's gross domestic product. Sought-after private tutors can earn a banker's salary.

South Korean companies, such as KT Corp (030200.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which plan to upgrade their Internet-powered TV services to full IPTV this year, are spearheading the move.

KT Corp says e-learning for children ranked among the most successful programming on its MegaTV, which also offers after-school tutoring and adult education courses.

"The response is strong for kids' programs in which they learn by playing games and solving puzzles using a remote control," said Yang Jae-geon, KT's director of media.