BTS's agency named in 'TIME 100 Most Influential Companies'

BTS's management company HYBE has been included on Time Magazine's “100 Most Influential Companies” list. Capture from Time Magazine's website

By Dong Sun-hwa

HYBE, a K-pop record label that houses BTS, has been included on Time Magazine's “100 Most Influential Companies” list.

The company made the list with Google, Tesla, Apple and Samsung among other global firms. The U.S. magazine said that it collected nominations across diverse sectors and evaluated them based on their areas of relevance, impact, innovation, leadership, ambition and success. It published the list Tuesday (local time).

“Founded in 2005, HYBE ― formerly known as Big Hit Entertainment ― was once an underdog talent agency in South Korea's competitive music industry,” the magazine said. “But thanks to supergroup BTS ― arguably the biggest band in the world ― the company is in rarefied air.”

“Like Disney before it, HYBE looks at each of its acts as intellectual property to be developed into a universe of fan-friendly experiences and products. In the case of BTS, that's meant everything from logos on Samsung smartphones to virtual Fortnite parties.”

HYBE was founded by Bang Si-hyuk in 2005. This April, the company acquired Ithaca Holdings in a $1.05 billion deal. Ithaca Holdings is the parent company of SB Project, which manages big-name pop stars such as Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande.