K-Pop Entertainment Platform 'Makestar' Secures 6 Billion KRW Investment

Investment Participation by Altos Ventures and Others

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] K-pop entertainment platform Makestar (CEO Kim Jae-myeon) announced on the 8th that it has secured a total investment of 6 billion KRW from Korea Development Bank, SangSang Ventures, as well as existing investors Altos Ventures and ES Investor. With this, the cumulative investment amount reached 11.6 billion KRW.

Makestar, founded by Kim Jae-myeon, a founding member of FNC Entertainment, along with entertainment and IT experts working collaboratively, has been providing a K-pop content production and distribution platform service since 2015. Based on crowdfunding, it allows fans worldwide to easily and conveniently participate in K-pop content production, offering fun and benefits accordingly. Recently, the platform has expanded its content fields to include dramas, movies, influencers, and even collaboration products in beauty and fashion.

So far, Makestar has conducted over 500 projects with more than 200 domestic entertainment companies such as CJ, Cube, Fantagio, RBW, and Woollim, featuring popular artists like IZ*ONE, MAMAMOO, SEVENTEEN, THE BOYZ, and AB6IX. In addition, it provides entertainment companies with global customer analysis data including country, age, gender, and region, maintaining a close collaborative relationship for mutual growth with the K-pop market.

Last year, Makestar recorded sales of 11 billion KRW, a 250% increase compared to the previous year, with over 70% of the revenue generated from the US, Europe, Japan, and China. Among all Makestar users, 75% come from overseas, with the US accounting for 20%, followed by Europe, Japan, Southeast Asia, and users visiting from over 230 countries worldwide.

CEO Kim Jae-myeon stated, "Based on this investment, we plan to focus on technology development and service advancement to provide better content and services to users." Park Hee-eun, partner at Altos Ventures, who participated in this round following the previous Series A, said, "Since our first investment, Makestar has demonstrated its service with high growth rates in the global market over the past year and a half," adding, "We expect it to establish itself as a leading service favored by fans worldwide during the heyday of K-pop platforms."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.