Yonhap News, VNA sign MOU on broadcasting cooperation

SEOUL, Nov. 9 (Yonhap) -- Yonhap News Agency, South Korea's key news service, and
Vietnam's state-run news agency VNA on Monday signed a memorandum of
understanding on sharing experience and information in broadcasting, as the two
companies prepare to launch their own television news channels.
Yonhap, which currently offers a web-based news program that runs for nine hours
per day, is seeking to obtain a government license to launch an all-news cable
television channel, while VNA is planning to set up a Vietnamese version of CNN
early next year.
Under the MOU signed by Yonhap News President & CEO Park Jung-chan and VNA
General Director Tran Mai Huong, the two agencies will share experience and
know-how in the broadcast field, as well as exchange programs, productions and
management advice. The agreement also calls for exploring possibilities for
promotion and collaboration through staff exchange programs.
"Yonhap has been allowed to enter the broadcasting industry following
parliamentary approval of the revised media laws and is now seeking to obtain a
license for an all-news TV channel," Park said at the MOU signing ceremony in
Seoul.
"I believe this agreement with VNA will become an opportunity for the two
agencies to strengthen their longstanding cooperation and provide better
broadcast content to their respective viewers," Park said.
Established in 1980, Yonhap News currently has news exchange contracts with over
50 news agencies worldwide, including AP, AFP, Kyodo, Xinhua, Itar-Tass and VNA.
Yonhap provides news in seven languages -- Korean, English, Chinese, Japanese,
Spanish, Arabic and French.
VNA, the official news agency in Vietnam, was founded in 1945 shortly after the
August Revolution that ended French colonial rule there. Currently the largest
Vietnamese media outlet with 850 journalists, VNA has signed services-exchange
agreements with some 40 news agencies around the world, including Yonhap.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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