Baemin at 15: The Future of the Platform Industry?

Baedal Minjok (Baemin), which started 15 years ago from a small idea at a Caffe Bene Dapsimni branch, created a giant ecosystem worth 153 trillion won by transferring restaurant flyers to smartphones. Having recorded 6.5 billion cumulative orders, it has now deeply embedded itself in the daily lives of Koreans. Like the philosophy embedded in the name 'Woowa Brothers,' it simultaneously solved the burden of advertising costs for small restaurants and the cumbersome phone order problem for consumers, leading to a 50-fold growth in monthly orders within 9 years. However, its dominant position with a 59% market share casts a shadow along with controversy over its monopoly. Brokerage, payment, and delivery fees overlap, causing some restaurants to bear more than 40% of the order amount, and is pointed to as a cause of high dining-out prices. Prime Ministerial candidate Kim Min-seok diagnosed this as "the second IMF crisis," identifying it as the main culprit of price increases and suggesting legislation such as a commission cap. The government suggests activating public delivery apps as an alternative, but as seen in the sluggish performance of services like 'Delivery Express,' it is insufficient to replace private platforms in terms of technology, capital, and user experience. Despite its initial resolve to "create a gracious world," the irony of becoming a national platform with over 21 million monthly users and subsequently a political target deepens. With an average of 22.38 million monthly users, ranking second among all commerce apps after Coupang, its social responsibility and political pressure are growing as it has become a core infrastructure of the national economy. Even with 500 billion won in corporate tax paid over the past three years, the reality is that it's difficult to quell the 40% commission controversy. Baemin now stands at a crossroads of innovation and regulation, growth and coexistence. Along with investments in future-oriented services like quick commerce 'Baemin B Mart' and robot delivery 'Dilly,' under government pressure to activate public delivery apps and implement commission caps, it remains to be seen how it will realize its vision of an "irreplaceable platform." Baemin's next 15 years will be an important test, going beyond mere corporate growth to gauge the sustainability of Korea's platform economy.