If Japan Produces 'Korean-Origin' Webtoons... "Unlimited Growth Potential"

Japanese Webtoon Studio Achieves 1.13 Billion KRW Monthly Sales with a Single Title
Simultaneous Serialization on Global Platforms Through Partnership with Line Manga
"Korean Platforms Contribute to the Revitalization of Japan's Webtoon Industry"

"The future of Japanese webtoons is still bright. This is because the market is not yet mature, but rather in a period of growth. In fact, I entered the webtoon industry myself after seeing news that a single webtoon had surpassed 100 million yen in monthly sales." (Takuya Kobayashi, CEO of Studio Number Nine)

On the afternoon of the 12th, at the Studio Number Nine headquarters in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, CEO Kobayashi assessed the growth potential of the Japanese webtoon market in these terms. Unlike Korea, where the webtoon market was established early and has already reached a certain level of maturity, the Japanese market still has significant room for growth.

On the afternoon of the 12th, Takuya Kobayashi, CEO, is speaking at a press conference held at the Studio Number Nine building in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, Japan. Provided by Naver Webtoon

Cover of the Japanese edition (left) and Korean edition of the webtoon "Sinsangui Guseju" produced by Studio Number Nine. Provided by Naver Webtoon

Studio Number Nine is a webtoon production studio established in Tokyo, Japan. In Japan, where print comics such as standalone volumes are mainstream, the studio produces webtoons in-house. Originally, the company focused solely on distributing print comics in digital form for smartphones, but it expanded into production as it entered the webtoon market. Recently, it also received investment from Line Digital Frontier (LDF), the operator of Line Manga.

The studio's flagship webtoons include "Sinsangui Guseju" and "Only I Am the Strongest Transcender." For both works, Japanese creators are responsible for everything from story development to illustration and coloring. Among them, the signature title "Sinsangui Guseju" has gained significant popularity in Japan, making it into Line Manga's annual top 10 last year. Last month, this title achieved monthly sales of approximately 120 million yen (about 1.13 billion KRW).

Studio Number Nine entered webtoon production because the Japanese webtoon market is considered a "blue ocean" with high growth potential. The print market, which dominates the Japanese comics industry, is already controlled by major publishers. However, webtoons are still classified as an emerging market locally. After venturing into webtoon production, Studio Number Nine produced the hit title "Sinsangui Guseju," which helped the company expand its business.

On the afternoon of the 12th, a storyboard artist is drawing at Studio Number Nine's building in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, Japan. Provided by Naver Webtoon

The reason this local webtoon studio was able to produce a hit was its thorough study of the conventions of Korean webtoons. Hiroyuki Endo, the editor in charge of "Sinsangui Guseju," said, "It was my first time editing webtoons, so before starting, I watched nearly 200 Korean webtoons. Even now, I make sure to check out new Korean releases as they come out." Story writer Shunji Eto added, "I read popular Korean webtoons until I almost passed out. We believed that incorporating elements of Korean webtoons into our works would appeal to readers, so we produced them with that in mind."

The reason they chose Line Manga (the Japanese service of Naver Webtoon) as their distribution platform was not only its large user base, but also its advantages for global expansion. In fact, both "Sinsangui Guseju" and "Only I Am the Strongest Transcender" have been translated into Korean and are serialized on Naver Webtoon as well. The fact that Line, an affiliate company, is considered Japan's national messenger and has a large user base also played a role.

Studio members unanimously agreed that Korean platforms, including Line Manga, have greatly contributed to the growth of the Japanese webtoon market. CEO Kobayashi commented, "Line Manga and Piccoma, the two leading webtoon platforms in Japan, are engaging in healthy competition, which is contributing to the revitalization of the webtoon industry."

The growth potential of the Japanese webtoon market remains significant. Webtoons could see another heyday through adaptations into animated content, such as webtoon-based animations. CEO Kobayashi said, "If our works are adapted into animation, it will be a major turning point. The success of the webtoon 'Solo Leveling' after it was made into an animation has created an atmosphere that webtoons can also succeed as animated works."

A press conference held on the afternoon of the 12th at Studio Number Nine building in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, Japan. Takuya Kobayashi, story writer Shunji Eto, and editor Hiroyuki Endo (from left). Provided by Naver Webtoon

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