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Naver (Korean: 네이버; stylized as NAVER) is a South Korean online platform operated by the Naver Corporation. The Naver provides community services including blogs and cafes, other convenient services such as knowledge, shopping, maps, books, e-mail and naver tool bar.[1]
 Logo used from 2018 | |
 | |
| NAVER | |
Native name | 네이버주식회사 |
Romanized name | Neibeo Jusikhoesa |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Internet |
| Founded | 1999[1] |
| Founder | Lee Hae-jin |
| Headquarters | |
| Parent | Naver Corporation |
| Subsidiaries |
|
| Website | naver |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 네이버주식회사 |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization | Neibeo Jusikhwoesa |
| McCune–Reischauer | Neibŏ Chusikhwoesa |
Naver was the first Korean web provider to develop its own search engine. It was also the world's first operator to introduce the comprehensive search feature, which compiles search results from various categories and presents them on a single page. Since then, Naver has added a multitude of new services, ranging from basic features such as email and news to the world's first online Q&A platform, Knowledge iN.[2]
As of September 2017, the search engine handled 74.7% of all web searches in South Korea and had 42 million registered users. More than 25 million Koreans have Naver as the start page on their default browser, and the mobile application has 28 million daily visitors.[2]
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Naver was the first Korean web provider to develop its own search engine. The company was founded on June 2, 1999 and is headquartered in Seongnam, South Korea. Naver is a combination of 'navigate', which means to navigate the Internet, and the suffix '-er', which means person, which means a person who navigates the vast ocean of information on the Internet.[3] The Naver provides community services including blogs and cafes, other convenient services such as knowledge, shopping, maps, books, e-mail and naver tool bar.[1]
In August 2000, Naver launched its 'comprehensive search' service, which allows users to get a variety of results from a single search query on one page, organized by type, including blogs, websites, images, and web communities. It was the world's first operator to introduce the comprehensive search feature, which compiles search results from various categories and presents them on a single page.[2]
Naver became an early pioneer in user-generated content through the creation of the 'Knowledge iN' (네이버 지식인)' service in 2002. In Knowledge iN, users can pose questions on any subject and select from answers provided by other users, awarding points to those who give the best answers. Knowledge iN was launched three years before Yahoo! introduced its similar 'Yahoo! Answers' service[4] and now possesses a database of over 200 million answers. Bradley Horowitz, former Vice President of Product Strategy at Yahoo!, has cited Knowledge iN as the inspiration for Yahoo! Answers, which was launched three years after Naver introduced the original service.[5]
Over the years, Naver has continued to expand its services. Naver Blog started with the name 'paper' in June 2003 and evolved to 'blog' in October 2003.[6] 'Webtoon' is a South Korean webtoon publisher launched in 2004 by Naver.[7]
In May 2005, Naver started the Real-time Search service. The rising search terms was a chart in Naver that highlighted trending topics in real-time. The top searches would appear on the portal main page reaching a large number of users.[8]
From 2005 to 2007, Naver expanded its multimedia search services, including music and video search, as well as mobile search. Naver had launched a messaging app called Line for the South Korean market in February 2011.[9]
In 2019, Naver reorganized its mobile version of the main screen, excluding search windows and some menus. In response, more than 3,000 comments opposing the change were posted.[10]
In October 2023, Naver announced the beta release of its AI chatbot service, 'CLOVA X' (클로바X).[11]
Naver mobile map application has begun providing real-time service on natural disaster information starting this September 15, 2024.[12]
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Naver Dictionary
Naver Dictionary was launched in 1999, alongside Naver. It initially only supported Korean and English.[13] As of 2024[update], it supports 67 languages.[14] The dictionary aggregates results from a number of other dictionaries, including Urimalsaem, which is operated by the National Institute of Korean Language.[15] It also aggregates results from English-language dictionaries such as Oxford Dictionary of English[16] and the Collins English Dictionary.[17] It also operates an open-source dictionary called Open Dictionary PRO (ODP).[15]
Junior Naver
Junior Naver (쥬니어 네이버), also known as Juniver (쥬니버), is a portal website for children, similar to Yahooligans. Junior Naver offers services such as avatars, educational content, quizzes, videos, Q&A, and a homework helper. It uses a panel of experts and educators to filter out harmful content, ensuring a safe internet environment for children. With its competitors Daum Kids and Yahoo Kids having closed down, Junior Naver is now the only children's portal site operating in Korea.[citation needed]
Knowledge iN
Knowledge iN (지식iN), formerly Knowledge Search (지식검색), is an online Q&A platform launched in October 2002.[18] The tool allows users to ask any question and receive answers from other users. Naver became an early pioneer in user-generated content through the creation of the 'Knowledge iN' (네이버 지식인)' service in 2002. Bradley Horowitz, former Vice President of Product Strategy at Yahoo!, has cited Knowledge iN as the inspiration for Yahoo! Answers, which was launched three years after Naver introduced the original service.[5]
Naver encourages unauthorized publishing to attract users to its Knowledge iN service. This contributes to poor-quality content on Knowledge iN, as previous answers to questions remain unchanged and old questions can only be minimally modified by other users. Criticism is also growing due to Naver's unilateral control over comments and its editing of information that may contradict its political positions. The 10s and 20s accounted for 70% of the questioners and 50% of the respondents. In April 2024, the service was reorganized so that answers could be continuously registered without closing questions, and new answers could be registered even if there were adopted answers. In addition, the limit on the number of additional questions and additional answers has disappeared. Even if you are not a questioner or an answerer, you can express your support for the answers you like.[19]
Naver Webtoon
Naver Webtoon (네이버 웹툰), later simply WEBTOON, is a webcomic platform where users have free access to a variety of webtoons created by professional artists. Users can also pay publishers to view comic books and genre fiction content online. Naver has incorporated a 'Challenge' section that allows amateurs to post and promote their works.[7]
Naver Cafe
Naver Cafe (네이버 카페) is a service that allows Naver users to create their own internet communities. As of May 2017, 10.5 million cafes were active. Each person can create up to 300 cafes.[20] From January to August 2024, Naver Cafe's MAU averaged 30 million, up about 10% from the previous year.[21]
Naver Blog
Naver Blog (네이버 블로그) started with the name 'paper' in June 2003 and evolved to 'blog' in October 2003.[22] It had 23 million users as of April 2016.[citation needed] In 2023, there were 1.26 million new users.[23]
For two weeks from May 1, 2021, Naver held an event to pay up to 16,000 won to people who posted on Naver's blog every day. However, this event ended early due to several incidents involving people with multiple IDs. Many participants in the event criticized Naver's response.[24]
Naver announced on its official blog that it would resume its "Today's Diary Challenge (#오늘일기챌린지)" event, which ended early in three days, from May 24. However, only those who participated in the previously discontinued event (who completed the three-day record) can participate in the event.[25]
On May 13, 2021, Naver announced that it would display profile pictures along with comments posted on Naver news articles. Previously, only the first four digits of the author's ID were disclosed, making it difficult to identify users. Naver implemented this change expecting it to facilitate user recognition and address issues with malicious comments. Critics, however, criticized the company for censoring comments.[26]
Naver NOW
Naver NOW (formerly Naver TV) is a video streaming and sharing platform that primarily offers web dramas distributed by Naver. Naver NOW replaced the Naver TV mobile app, while Naver TV continues to serve as a web portal.[citation needed]
Naver Pay
In June 2015, Naver launched its own payment service, Naver Pay, which allows mobile payment service and online checkout. It is Naver's second mobile payment service after Line Pay. Naver Pay is the most widely used mobile payment service in South Korea.[27]
Naver Mail
Naver Mail (네이버 메일) is an email service available to all Naver users. Each user is provided with up to 5GB of storage.[citation needed]
Naver Shopping Live
Naver Shopping Live (네이버 쇼핑 라이브) is a live commerce platform operated by Naver. Broadcasts can be transmitted via mobile phones or camcorders, with a resolution of 1080*1920 and a vertical format similar to YouTube shorts. It is currently the platform with the highest number of consumers in Korea. As of 2023, 73.6% of mobile shoppers in South Korea use Naver Shopping Live as their primary platform.[28]
PRISM Live Studio
PRISM Live Studio (프리즘 라이브 스튜디오) is a live streaming application available for both mobile and PC users. Streamers can simultaneously broadcast to multiple platforms, a practice known as simulcasting, with support for up to 1080p HD resolution without increasing network usage. Supported platforms include YouTube, Facebook, Twitch, Periscope, V Live, Naver TV, afreecaTV, KakaoTV, and RTMP channels. The application can also be utilized for video editing purposes.[29]
Naver Papago
In July 2017, Naver launched Papago, which is an AI-based mobile translator that uses a large neural network technology named N2MT (Naver Neural Machine Translation). It can translate text and phrases in 15 different languages by analyzing context instead of statistical analysis. Papago app has so far garnered over 16 million downloads.[30]
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Naver has been criticized for abusing Real-time Search Terms (급상승 검색어) to manipulate public opinion.[clarification needed]. As a result, Naver abolished Real-time Search Terms on February 25, 2021.[31]
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