[IPO Spotlight] RBW, Leaping Toward a Global Comprehensive Content Company

Construction of Comprehensive Content Production Center with Public Fundraising and Equity Investment in Content Companies
Ownership of Neighboring Rights for Over 2,500 IP Songs...Foundation for Stable Growth
IP Value to Increase Further through Globalization of K-Content

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] RBW is going public on the KOSDAQ market to leap forward as a global comprehensive content company. The funds raised through the initial public offering (IPO) will be invested in expanding content production capabilities and acquiring neighboring copyright IP (intellectual property rights).

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on the 5th, RBW is conducting a subscription for a total of 1,253,000 shares, including 783,000 newly issued shares and 470,000 shares from existing shareholders. The desired public offering price is between 18,700 and 21,400 KRW, and the final offering price will be determined after reviewing the demand forecast results from institutional investors on the 5th and 8th. Excluding the sale of existing shares, at least 14.8 billion KRW will be raised.

The raised funds will be invested in building a comprehensive content production center and also used to invest in entertainment or content companies that can create synergy with RBW in music, video, and convergence content. There is also a plan to secure funds for acquiring neighboring copyright IP.

RBW operates not only artist management but also production agency businesses related to video, advertising, albums, and events. From 2013 to last year, the average annual sales growth rate reached 73.1%. It has continued rapid growth without recording losses. This is the result of not merely focusing on expanding scale. Last year, it recorded sales of 37.3 billion KRW and operating profit of 7.6 billion KRW. The operating profit margin exceeded 20%. Among total sales, the management business sales proportion concentrated on exclusive artists is only 15.5%. The highest proportion is copyright-related sales such as music, albums, and videos at 39.7%, followed by production agency sales (26.1%), performance sales (2.3%), and other sales including online malls (16.4%), achieving sales through business diversification.

RBW CEO Jinwoo Kim cited the efficient content production system as one of RBW's competitive advantages. Sixteen top-tier composers, including CEO PD Dohoon Kim, and about ten specialized personnel focused on new media produce high-quality content. RBW’s production system is recognized not only domestically but also overseas. This is why famous foreign artists come to RBW to produce music. CEO Kim emphasized, "We intend to secure partial IP rights for content in which RBW participates in production," adding, "As the value of IP grows, RBW’s corporate value will also grow."

RBW’s reason for nurturing good artists focuses more on securing competitive IP rather than simply increasing management sales by raising popular entertainers. He said, "Although well known as the agency of Mamamoo, I believe RBW has no future if it remains just a management company," and added, "We currently hold about 2,500 IPs, and this number will increase even faster."

Since many people continue to listen to music they enjoyed during their school days even as adults, steady sales occur even for older music. The more neighboring copyright IPs owned, the larger the stable revenue scale. Neighboring copyright is recognized for 70 years after IP release.

CEO Kim emphasized, "People may leave, but IP remains," and said, "Last year, we renewed a 50 billion KRW music distribution contract with Kakao M, and sales have exceeded 10 billion KRW in just 10 months."

As revenue models using music diversify worldwide, the value of music IP is also increasing. Domestic music prices are more than 30% cheaper than the overseas average. As music utilization increases, there is significant potential for music prices to rise. With major domestic entertainment companies like HYBE and SM competing in music-related platforms, the value of IP owned by RBW can grow even more. CEO Kim expressed confidence, saying, "After the IPO, the amount of content produced by RBW itself will increase significantly," and "If we discover many capable labels and create synergy with RBW, the IP portfolio will rapidly expand."

He added, "All content produced by RBW targets overseas markets," and said, "As interest in K-content grows overseas, there will be more opportunities to increase the value of IP owned by RBW."

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