North Korean teenagers are willing to risk severe punishment, including execution, to watch the South Korean soap opera Reply 1997. According to a Radio Free Asia report, Reply 1997 is so popular in North Korea that in certain circles teenagers who have not viewed the show are considered behind the times. Many North Koreans watch the series via USB-based flash memory drives. It is difficult for authorities to crack down on the copies of Reply 1997 distributed on USB drives, which go for about US $20 on the North Korean black market. DVD copies of the show are cheaper and run around US $10 for a set of 12 disks. The popularity of South Korean dramas suggests a growing curiosity among young North Koreans about life south of the border. Viewing such shows, however, remains dangerous as earlier in December around 80 people were publically executed, some for watching foreign media, in a wave of capital punishments spanning seven cities.