The president of South Korea's public broacaster KBS has vowed to carry out sweeping structural reforms in the first half of next year in a bid to turn the company into a trusted public media optimized for the digital era.

KBS President and CEO Yang Sung-dong announced the plan on Wednesday during his inaugural speech, saying KBS has a duty to enrich the people's livelihoods and to protect democracy through content and services that fulfill the public interest.

He said KBS has reached a state of urgency where it must drastically revamp its organization and management style to fulfill those duties.

Yang pledged to raise the company's credibility and influence, expand the reach of its online and mobile contents and to enhance efficiency and flexibility within the organization during his three-year term.