Seoul (AFP)
Global streaming giant Netflix changed a phone number that appeared in the hit series Squid Game on Wednesday, after South Koreans with that number or similar combinations were drowned in a deluge of calls.
The nine-part Korean series, blending extreme violence and denouncing economic inequality, features hundreds of characters participating in a children's play competition to win 45.6 million won (33 million euros) , the losers being killed.
To participate in this game, they must call a number that appears on a business card.
While film and series directors usually use fake numbers, the eight digits on this business card correspond to a real phone number.
This belongs to an individual, who complained of having received "non-stop" calls and messages, he told Money Today.
"I have been receiving calls and written messages non-stop since the Squid Game release, interrupting my daily life," said the person whose identity has not been released.
Other South Koreans with similar phone numbers have also complained of hoaxes.
Some callers call in the middle of the night saying they "want to participate in Squid Game" before hanging up.
Faced with the rise in these complaints, Netflix announced on Wednesday a withdrawal of the phone number.
The company said it is working "to resolve the issue, with edited scenes showing the phone number where it is needed," Netflix said in a statement.
On Thursday, the eight-digit number broadcast in the first two episodes was effectively replaced by a six-digit version.
A call to this number received this automatic response: "the number you have dialed is not available".
South Korean series Squid Game is a hit on Netflix in more than 80 countries and is on its way to becoming the most popular series in the streaming giant's history.
© 2021 AFP