The Korean Edition of 'The Big Issue', the social enterprise that helps people on the fringes of society become financially independent, will adopt 'PUBLISHsoft,' a blockchain-based content management system.

Founded in the UK by John Bird and Gordon Roddick, The Big Issue offers people facing poverty and exclusion the opportunity to earn a legitimate income by selling magazines to the public.

Since its conception in 1991, the magazine has launched operations in Australia, France, Japan, Korea, Malawi, Nambia, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, Taiwan, and Zambia.

In Korea, there are currently 100 vendors, who buy the magazine for 5,000 KRW (South Korean won) and sell it for 2,500 KRW. The first 10 magazines are provided to vendors free of charge.

The Big Issue Korea received the Prime Minister’s Official Commendation at the ‘2016 Social Enterprise Week and Social Economy Expo’ and won the grand prize at Korea Marketing Association’s ‘2016 Marketing Grand Prize Awards’ ceremony.

Sonny Kwon, the CEO of PUBLISH, Inc., said, “It is a great honor to be able to work with The Big Issue Korea and support its mission of dismantling poverty."

About PUBLISH, Inc.

PUBLISH, Inc. is blockchain-based software solutions provider for newspaper businesses. Its mission is to secure the editorial and financial independence of newspaper businesses using blockchain technology. Its initiatives include PUBLISHprotocol, an open source blockchain media protocol that promotes a participatory mode of news production and consumption; PUBLISHalliance, a consortium of media enterprises, technology providers, and academic institutions tasked with the development and proliferation of PUBLISHprotocol; and PUBLISHsoft, a proprietary content management system for newspaper newsrooms that facilitates the launch and management of a PUBLISHprotocol-based cryptographic token.