Powerless 'Jcontentree'

Securities Market's Rosy Outlook Fades... Nearly 20% Drop Since June
Hope for Revival Through 'Producer Acquisition'

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] Despite rosy forecasts from the securities industry, J Contentree's stock price has continued to struggle.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 8th, as of the 7th, J Contentree closed at 46,150 KRW, down 3.95% (1,900 KRW) from the previous trading day. The downward trend has persisted since last month. In June alone, J Contentree's stock price fell by 15.18%. It has also dropped 4.55% so far this month.

Contrary to the stock price, the securities industry's outlook had been positive. On the 23rd of last month, J Contentree acquired three domestic production companies (Contents Jium, Climax Studio, and Production H) through its subsidiary JTBC Studio to strengthen its content capabilities. With expectations that COVID-19 restrictions would ease in the second half of the year, box office hits like Black Widow and Mogadishu were anticipated. On the same day, Samsung Securities raised J Contentree's target stock price from 57,000 KRW to 63,000 KRW.

However, negative factors emerged both inside and outside J Contentree. First, the ratings of dramas planned and invested in by J Contentree were disappointing. The drama Law School, which ended on JTBC on the 3rd of last month, recorded a peak rating of only 6.9%. Sisyphus, which was expected to be a hit earlier this year, ended its broadcast with a peak rating of 6.7%. The cinema situation suddenly began to deteriorate. On the 6th, the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases reached 1,212, marking the first time in 194 days that cases exceeded 1,200.

Nevertheless, the securities industry remains optimistic about J Contentree's future, believing that content will ultimately be the driving force. The production company acquisitions made last month are expected to lead to an increase in production volume. Daishin Securities forecasted that J Contentree will produce a total of 17 contents this year, 21 next year, and increase by 1 to 2 titles annually thereafter.

Competitiveness in the Over-The-Top (OTT) video service market is also seen as a positive factor. Kim Hoe-jae, a researcher at Daishin Securities, explained, "The absence of Monday-Tuesday dramas and the poor performance of existing dramas are being offset by broadcasting on OTT platforms such as Netflix and TVING, improving profitability," adding, "They will soon supply dramas to Disney's OTT service 'Disney Plus,' which will be launched domestically."

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