Kakao Entertainment Acquires Melon "Annual Sales of 2 Trillion Won" (Comprehensive)

[Asia Economy Reporter Buaeri] Kakao Entertainment and Melon Company are merging.

Kakao Entertainment and Melon held their respective board meetings on the 15th and resolved to merge. After final approval through a shareholders' meeting on the 30th, the merger is planned to be completed on September 1.

Melon, which was spun off from Kakao, will join Kakao Entertainment as an in-house independent company (CIC).

Lee Jae-wook, New CEO of Melon Company

Melon will be newly led by Lee Jae-wook, the new CEO of Melon Company. Even after the merger with Melon, Kakao Entertainment will operate under a dual CEO system with Kim Sung-soo and Lee Jin-soo.

The merger ratio between Kakao Entertainment and Melon is 1 to 7.8367918, with 7.836791 shares of Kakao Entertainment common stock allocated for each one share of Melon's common stock.

The company explained that the merger between Kakao Entertainment and Melon is a decision to secure global competitiveness and leadership in the entertainment industry. Through the combination with Melon, Kakao Entertainment is expected to reach annual sales of 2 trillion won.

Kakao Entertainment is a global entertainment company equipped with planning and production capabilities across all content fields, from intellectual property (IP) centered on webtoons and web novels to music, dramas, movies, and digital performances. It owns a total of 8,500 original IPs and has six film and drama production companies, six actor management agencies, and four music labels under its umbrella.

Melon is Korea's leading music platform with a total of 33 million members and over 5 million paid subscribers. It provides various content, including a music service offering Korea's largest big data-based personalized curation.

The two companies are expected to create synergy in various businesses through the merger. In particular, Kakao Entertainment's music content business is expected to generate strong synergy with the Melon platform, driving growth in the music industry. Various business models (BM), such as linking Kakao Webtoon and Melon, will also be strengthened.

With this merger, Kakao Entertainment will establish a unique value chain covering all stages from planning and production to distribution across the entire entertainment field. Kakao Entertainment plans to further expand its business areas and increase its firepower.

Kakao Entertainment stated, "Following the merger of Kakao Page and Kakao M, the merger with Melon itself is an innovation," and added, "We will become a true world-class leading company in the global entertainment industry."

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