'K-Content Hotspot' One Store Makes Aggressive Investments to Secure Popular IPs

Acquisition of Top Genre Novel Publisher Rock Media
JV 'YesOne Studio' Established with Yes24
Talent Development in Collaboration with Chung-Ang Culture Industry University
Content Provided for Nate's New Service

[Asia Economy Reporter Minyoung Cha] One Store, an app market that offers various content such as games, apps, and story content, is accelerating its acquisition of intellectual property (IP) by acquiring Rok Media, a major player in the genre literature industry. It is also establishing a joint venture (JV) with Yes24 to not only secure IP but also strengthen the production and distribution of secondary works. The company will systematically support the training of specialized personnel for webtoons and web novels and expand the online content supply chain through Nate.

On the 1st, One Store announced various plans to strengthen its content business, including the acquisition of Rok Media, a genre novel specialized publisher. Through this acquisition, JV establishment, and partnerships, One Store aims to secure content rights for webtoons and web novels and build a 'K-content' distribution value chain that enables secondary production in various forms such as movies and games.

Securing Rights for 1,200 Titles... Secondary Work Production and Global Expansion

First, One Store acquired Rok Media, the largest genre content publisher in Korea. Established in 2003, Rok Media is a publishing company specializing in genre literature such as fantasy and game novels, with extensive content production capabilities spanning webtoons, web novels, and general books. It holds rights to over 1,200 titles and has contracts with more than 700 authors. It has published bestsellers such as "Moonlight Sculptor" by author Nam Hee-sung and "Ark" by author Yoo Sung, and owns titles including "Taming Master," "Infinite Wizard," "This Is the Law," "Again My Life," and "Contract Bride of the Monster Duke." Many works are currently being adapted into webtoons and videos, and the company supplies content to platforms in 12 countries across Europe and Asia.

With this acquisition, One Store can supply high-quality content to its story content platform, 'One Store Books.' At the same time, it is expected to create synergy effects by expanding existing One Store Books content into various forms based on Rok Media's publishing capabilities. Additionally, One Store will be able to produce and distribute various content centered on those already being adapted into webtoons and videos. Rok Media's global distribution channels are also expected to be a significant asset.

One Store also established a JV called Studio YesOne with Yes24, Korea's leading online bookstore. Studio YesOne will secure specialized production personnel for web novels and webtoons, produce popular genre content such as romance, fantasy, and martial arts, and increase rights acquisition by attracting authors. The two companies will organically cooperate across the entire content business, from producing web novels, webtoons, and novel comics to secondary works such as games, movies, animations, and character products, as well as expanding global business.

Establishing a System for Training Specialized Personnel... Content Supply to Nate

One Store is also partnering with Chung-Ang University of Cultural Industries, a specialized college for cultural industries. Both parties plan to cooperate in nurturing rapidly growing web novel and webtoon authors and developing high-quality content suitable for global services and video adaptations. They will build a dedicated studio for web novel and webtoon content production within Chung-Ang University of Cultural Industries, support startups, provide mentoring and creative grants, and offer opportunities for students to present and promote their content through One Store Books.

Furthermore, through a strategic partnership with SK Communications, One Store plans to provide content from One Store Books to the new service 'Toon & Book' launched on the portal Nate starting early this month.

Lee Jae-hwan, CEO of One Store, said, "One Store has significantly strengthened its content business capabilities and has become a leading company in the online entertainment industry. Amid the K-content boom, we will develop our abundant content in various forms and grow into a company that competes in the global market."

Meanwhile, One Store's story content sector has continued to grow, with annual transaction volume increasing by more than 40% compared to the previous year. It has received positive responses by launching Book Pass, a subscription product that allows unlimited use of general books and webtoons. The company is also actively securing original content by holding fantasy and martial arts web novel contests and expanding content investment across various genres.

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