[Exclusive] YG established STUDIOPLEX… Big bang of “TV drama Korean Wave” following CJ and SM
Recruited famous TV producers… Joining next month
Outpost for entering the global market, going beyond Asia
[문화닷컴=안진용 기자] YG Entertainment (“YG”), the company that is managing many Korean Wave stars such as group BIGBANG, actor GANG DONG WON and LEE JONG SUK, has established a TV drama production company to enter the Korean Wave drama market in earnest.
YG launched “YG STUDIOPLEX”, a company specialized in the production of Korean Wave contents, in collaboration with other companies including WindBlows Co., Ltd. that produced hit drama series That Winter, the Wind Blows, through YG subsidiary YG PLUS. Last year, YG built trust in the market by participating in the joint production and investment in Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo which was produced by WindBlows Co., Ltd. and exported to Chinese video contents company Youku at the highest-ever price ($400,000 for each episode) for Korean TV drama series.
An YG insider said, “After drawing a detailed blueprint about the business of YG STUDIOPLEX, it opened an office in Sinsa-dong, Seoul. The company will work as the outpost for producing contents that will enter the global market, going beyond Asia”.
YG STUDIOPLEX also recruited producer Park Hong-gyun who has produced MBC TV’s drama series Queen Seondeok and The Greatest Love. Park has already submitted his resignation to MBC and is known to join YG STUDIOPLEX in May.
Recently, the Korean Wave contents market is being restructured, focusing mainly on TV dramas. Before YG, SM has already been producing drama series through its subsidiary SM C&C and CJ E&M established Studio Dragon, a subsidiary specialized in TV drama business.
Studio Dragon acquired a production company that had leading drama writers including Kim Eun-sook and Park Ji-eun who have written well-known Korean Wave drama series. Since then, the company has been leading the Korean TV drama market, producing Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, The Legend of the Blue Sea, Tunnel, Chicago Typewriter, etc.
For example, drama series You Who Came from the Stars recorded 530.5 billion Korean won of total domestic and overseas advertising sales, as well as one trillion won of comprehensive production inducement (data from Korea Culture and Tourism Institute). Another drama series Descendants of the Sun was sold to 32 countries around the world. As such, TV dramas are not just export goods, but also an opportunity to spread Korea’s culture worldwide and promote Korean consumer goods overseas through “products in placement” (PPL).
A CEO of a drama production company said, “Statistics say that the number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea doubled after drama series You Who Came from the Stars was aired in China. In such sense, TV dramas are comprehensive cultural contents that can promote Korea’s image overseas. Leading entertainment companies are establishing drama production companies and planning to list those companies in the KOSDAQ market”.
2017. 4. 27.
