Nam Goong-hoon, each CEO of Kakao, resigned on the 19th after taking responsibility for Kakao’s ‘food crisis’. It has been four days since people stopped their daily lives due to the simultaneous failure of all services such as Kakao Talk, Kakao Taxi, Kakao Banking, and Kakao Shopping. CEO Namgoong said, “To take full responsibility for this incident, I will take the role of the Disaster Response Subcommittee of the Emergency Response Committee and focus on preparing measures to prevent recurrence.” It is not only the national disappointment that Kakao, which is called the ‘national messenger’ and is used by the majority of the people, has been consumed by a simple fire. In order for Kakao to restore the lost trust, it needs to show bone-chilling renewal and change.
This is not the first time the Kakao service has been disrupted. In April 2012, Kakao Talk stopped for about 4 hours due to an abnormality in the power system of the data center that Kakao rented. At that time, Kakao promised to operate multiple data centers and dualize servers as a countermeasure to prevent recurrence. But it was just words. Investments in system stabilization and disasters such as fire, earthquake, and terrorism were pushed down to the next priority. The amount of investment in facilities such as data centers was only half that of Naver. Kakao focused on expanding its octopus business by using its monopoly position instead of basic investment. The number of affiliates increased from 16 in 2013 to 187 as of the end of June. It has increased more than 10 times in 9 years. The company expanded its business to various fields, such as flower delivery and hair salon reservations, and caused controversy over infringement of alley commercial rights. Strategies of acquiring a competitive start-up and incorporating it into an affiliate, or spun off a new business and listed separately, have also come under fire. Some executives have been criticized for exercising stock options for self-interest, even when the stock price was likely to fall. If it’s too bad, would it even be called a ‘planned disaster’ even with this food crisis?
The way for Kakao to restore trust is to return to basics. First of all, reasonable compensation should be given to users who have suffered damage due to service failure. A double or triple system should be prepared promptly to prevent a reoccurrence of a food shortage. This is what Kakao should do, which has a profound impact on the daily lives of the people. In a hyper-connected society, giant platforms can be said to be key industries such as power grids and communication networks. It means that Kakao’s responsibility is that heavy.
[ⓒ 매일경제 & mk.co.kr, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]