Taekjin Hyung! Flew on the 'Seungriho'

NC's 10 Billion Investment Distributor Merry Christmas's 'Seungriho'
Ranked No.1 in 28 Countries on Netflix Two Days After Release

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] The bold investment by 'Taekjin hyung' has once again shone. The movie Seungriho, distributed by Merry Christmas, a company invested in by NCSoft, topped the global popular movie rankings just one day after its Netflix release.

According to FlixPatrol, a global streaming service ranking site, as of the second day of Seungriho's Netflix release on the 7th, it ranked number one on Netflix in 28 countries worldwide, including South Korea. It also led the total global streaming points by title with 648 points.

Seungriho is a Korean-style SF blockbuster produced by distributor Merry Christmas with a production budget of 24 billion KRW. The film stars actors Song Joong-ki, Kim Tae-ri, Jin Seon-kyu, and Yoo Hae-jin (voice appearance), showcasing strong and bold acting skills.

NCSoft invested 10 billion KRW in this distributor in May 2019. This investment stemmed from NCSoft CEO Kim Taek-jin's 'de-gaming' plan to evolve into a comprehensive content company. At the time, NCSoft stated, "We decided to invest as a mid- to long-term strategy to expand NCSoft IP beyond games into various media fields," adding, "The synergy between NCSoft IP, recognized for its value in the gaming industry, and Merry Christmas's content investment and distribution know-how will create new opportunities."

There were ups and downs before Seungriho was released to the public. It was the first blockbuster film to conduct crowdfunding but failed to reach its target amount, extending the funding period by a week. The release date was postponed twice, eventually leading to the decision to forgo a theatrical release. Concerns arose that NCSoft's investment might fail. However, contrary to expectations, the film showed signs of success from the early stages of its release, alleviating some of those worries.

There are also forecasts that NCSoft's investment in the entertainment sector will expand further. In July last year, NCSoft established its entertainment subsidiary KLEB and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with CJ ENM for business cooperation in content and digital platform fields, announcing plans to establish a joint venture. On the 28th of last month, NCSoft simultaneously launched the K-pop entertainment platform 'Universe' in 134 countries, targeting the global entertainment market.

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