South Korea’s Broadcast Media Telecommunications Commission said on April 17 it selected Kim Jae-hyo (김재효)’s 'Media Guardians' as the final winner of its character contest held to develop an official character for communication with the public.

'Media Guardians' is a work that visualises the commission’s identity in a cute and friendly image, including guaranteeing broadcasting independence, freedom of expression, public nature and public interest, establishing fair competition in the telecommunications services market and protecting user rights.

The contest, themed on developing a character that reflects the commission’s mission, vision and identity, ran for about a month from March and received 146 submissions. A panel of 6 expert judges evaluated entries based on originality, public appeal, scalability and completeness. The excellence award went to Jo Won-a (조원아)’s 'Shintongi and Bangtongi', while the encouragement award went to Yoo Sung-hoon (유성훈)’s 'Komi and Commun'. Prize money is 1 million won for the top prize, 500,000 won for the excellence award and 200,000 won for the encouragement award.

The selected character will be used for digital content such as videos and card news on the commission’s SNS channels, and is also set to be produced as goods such as key rings and electronic device wallpapers. The commission plans to use it in various promotional activities, including collaborations with characters from other organisations.

Kim Jong-cheol (김종철), chairman of the Broadcast Media Telecommunications Commission, said, "I thank the public for gifting us wonderful works with sparkling ideas." He added, "The selected character will serve as a communication messenger to deliver broadcasting, media and telecommunications policies in an easy and fun way."