Korea has opened its seventh innovation center, this time in the southeastern port city of Busan.<br />As part of President Park's creative economy drive, the government hopes to transform Busan's manufacturing-centered economy into a service-led growth engine of the future.<br />But experts say commitment from the corporate community will be the key to its success.<br />Choi You-sun lloks into the innovation drive. <br />In cooperation with retail giant Lotte Group, Korea's latest innovation center in Busan will set up a 200-million-dollar fund... to foster personnel and support startups in distribution, film and the Internet of Things.<br />It plans to offer a one-stop counseling service on development, marketing and commercialization of innovative products, and help diversify Busan's traditionally strong shoe and fisheries industries.<br /><br /><br />"The Busan center will become a base for innovation in distribution by increasing value and marketability of both traditional and new products to represent Korea."<br /><br /><br />Lotte, which also runs an entertainment business, will join hands with the government's new cultural creativity complex, to build an ecosystem for Korea's film industry.<br />In line with the government's goal to establish a global IoT hub by 2019, the Busan center will test potential commercialization of related technologies and nurture startups that integrate the technologies in the safety and tourism sectors.<br />As part of President Park's "creative economy" drive, the government plans to build 17 innovation centers around the country, each teaming up with a conglomerate to encourage creativity and help fledgling companies commercialize their products globally.<br /><br /><br />"The success of these centers is linked to how smoothly conglomerates and SMEs will cooperate, how much of an initiative they will take, and their intent to participate."<br /><br /><br />Placing a greater emphasis on the conglomerates' willingness to generate output, experts say that in order for the Park administration's innovation initiatives to bea
