Naver Webtoon Accelerates Entry into Japanese Content Market... Establishes Joint Venture with CJ ENM and Studio Dragon
[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Naver Webtoon announced on the 12th that its Japanese subsidiary, LINE Digital Frontier, will establish a joint venture (JV) in Japan called Studio Dragon Japan (tentative name) in partnership with CJ ENM and Studio Dragon. This is the first time that a Naver Webtoon overseas subsidiary has teamed up with a Korean production company to establish a local drama-specialized studio.
Studio Dragon Japan will be jointly funded with 30 billion KRW by LINE Digital Frontier, CJ ENM, and Studio Dragon, and is expected to be established in the first half of the year. The plan is to produce differentiated premium content and innovate the Japanese drama market.
With this, Naver Webtoon has secured video studio bases in Japan, along with StudioN in Korea and Wattpad WEBTOON Studios in the United States. Through this, it aims to strengthen video production capabilities based on local language and culture and take a step forward in the global content market.
Naver Webtoon expects that the establishment of this joint venture will accelerate the dramatization of original intellectual property (IP) owned by LINE Digital Frontier in Japan.
The size of the Japanese content market was estimated at approximately $191.3 billion (about 243.4815 trillion KRW) as of 2021. On the other hand, the drama market is mainly domestic, led by terrestrial channels, and it is rare to produce dramas aimed at global OTT platforms that prefer large-scale genre works. Therefore, the premium drama market based on original IP is expected to have high growth potential.
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Kim Shin-bae, Head of Naver Webtoon's Japan Business, said, "In Japan, a content powerhouse, we have established an IP value chain that connects webtoons to video adaptations," adding, "Through high-quality dramas targeting the global market beyond Japan, we will showcase the excellence of our original IP and strengthen our position as a global player that top-tier global entertainment companies seek first."
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