KRAFTON invests in the short video platform ‘Spoon Labs’ with a focus on dramas.
KRAFTON is making an equity investment of KRW 120 billion ($81.1 million) in Spoon Labs, a global short video platform specializing in dramas. This is KRAFTON’s largest investment to date in diversification outside of the gaming sector.
Spoon Labs is a company that has developed a global audio platform called Spoon, which is currently used worldwide. Recently, the company has expanded its business into the field of short video platforms and launched a dedicated platform for short films called “Vigloo”.
Vigloo is an online video service that specializes in short dramas. Similar to other online video platforms that allow users to share their own creations, Vigloo offers content curation tailored to the preferences of different countries and supports seven languages, including Korean, English, Japanese, Traditional Chinese, Spanish, Thai and Indonesian.
KRAFTON particularly valued Spoon Labs’ stable platform technology and the company’s successful global service experience. The growth potential of the short video drama market, the opportunity to secure new sources of intellectual property (IP), and the synergies with existing businesses were also key factors in the investment decision.
Currently, the short video drama market is experiencing rapid growth in major countries including the US and Japan, led by the Chinese market, which has reached KRW 7 trillion ($4.7 billion). Based on this growth, KRAFTON expects that the Korean content that Vigloo will introduce in the future has the potential to expand the Hallyu (Korean Wave) from the traditional drama market to the short video drama market.
CH Kim, CEO of KRAFTON, said, “Spoon Labs has already demonstrated its strong overseas business capabilities through Spoon in recent years. We look forward to creating entertainment that people around the world can enjoy together and establishing a robust ecosystem within the new business field of short video drama platforms.”
Hyukjae Choi, CEO of Spoon Labs, said, “We have strengthened our position as a global content platform company by expanding our business from audio to video. We plan to enter the US and Japanese markets soon. Together with KRAFTON, we will set a new international standard in the field of short dramas.”
Meanwhile, Spoon Labs has already collaborated with numerous production companies to release 60 exclusive content pieces on Vigloo so far, and plans to release a total of 120 content pieces by the end of the year. Starting this month, the company will begin releasing original content from Japan and increase its marketing efforts focused on Japan and the US.
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