By Kang Seung-woo
The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) last year saw more than 30 billion won ($26.58 million) in sales on the back of the sport’s growing popularity, an affiliate of the baseball governing body said Thursday.
According to Korea Baseball Organization Properties (KBOP), the marketing arm of the KBO, it saw record-high sales of 34 billion won in 2011, up 36 percent from the previous year.
This is the first time for sales to surpass 30 billion won since the local baseball league was established in 1982.
After factoring in spending, the KBOP gave about 3.7 billion won to each of the eight clubs, which paid 2 billion won in operating costs ahead of last season.
The revenue is mainly comprised of broadcasting rights, sponsorship deals and sales of baseball-related merchandise.
The earnings from broadcasting rights, including Internet protocol television (IPTV) and digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) as well as television, stood at 25 billion won, while sponsorship contracts brought in 7 billion won. They grew 50 and 40 percent, respectively, in comparison with 2010. Related-product sales including the online game business stood at 2 billion won.
The record sales came as baseball cemented its status as the nation’s most popular sport, attracting an all-time high of 6.8 million people last year.
“Baseball’s huge popularity enabled the KBOP to reach the highest sales ever last year. We plan to diversify our business portfolio,” said a KBOP official.
He also said that in order to reach 400 billion to 500 billion won in sales, a consolidated marketing system should be introduced like that of Major League Baseball (MLB).
In the United States, the commissioner's office operates all 30 of the clubs’ websites, tickets and merchandise and revenue is commensurate with each team’s sales.
However, local teams, especially with big markets like Seoul and Busan, are focusing on independent marketing rather than a consolidated effort.
“A few teams do not welcome the consolidated marketing system, but it will contribute to maximizing sales,” said a KBO official.