Homegrown OTT services take leap forward to win in competitive market
Local streaming service Wavve will release about 30 original content items this year. Courtesy of Wavve
By Lee Gyu-lee
Local over-the-top (OTT) services are making vigorous efforts to step up their game in the country's heated streaming war by securing sizable investments and providing original content.
Entertainment giant CJ ENM's streaming service Tving announced Friday that it has raised about 250 billion won ($291.1 million) in investments by issuing new stocks which were acquired by local private equity fund JCGI through a third-party allotment. The 382,500 shares acquired by JCGI account for about 12.8 percent of the total shares.
According to CJ ENM, the streaming service's enterprise value is estimated at 2 trillion won, which is almost six times higher than its 350 billion won estimation from last July.
Tving has reached several investment deals within the past year, including a 40 billion won one from tech giant Naver in July. Last December, the platform struck a global content licensing and distribution deal with the U.S.-based production company Paramount as part of its global strategic partnerships, securing a $7 million investment.
Wavve, a homegrown service run by broadcasters KBS, SBS and MBC and mobile carrier SK Telecom, has announced the forthcoming lineup of its original programming for this year.
“We will be presenting about 30 well-made content items of diverse genres from dramas and variety shows to films this year,” the platform said in a release, last Wednesday. “We will continue to secure high-quality original content through developing and producing shows with our own studio, Studio Wavve, and develop content intellectual property through partnering with networks and production, film and entertainment companies.”
A scene from Tving's original reality show "Seoul Check-in” / Courtesy of Tving
Wavve announced earlier last year that it would invest a total of 1 trillion won to create original content through 2025. It released about 26 original shows in 2021, including the action crime series “Taxi Driver” and the comedy series “One the Woman.”
The upcoming original series will include the comedy series “Critical X,” starring actors Kwon Sang-woo and Sung Dong-il, and the teen action series “Weak Hero,” starring K-pop singer and actor Park Ji-hoon.
The platform is also expected to debut several films, including its first original movie “Gentleman,” starring A-lister Ju Ji-hoon. The sequel to the 2021 comedy action flick “Mission: Possible,” starring actors Lee Sun-bin and Kim Young-kwang, is also under production by the platform.
The star-studded mystery thriller “Dead Man,” starring actors Cho Jin-woong and Kim Hee-ae, and the live adaptation of the popular webcomic “Brave Citizen,” starring Shin Hye-sun and Lee Jun-young, are also scheduled to hit the platform.
Wavve plans to release different shows with K-pop stars as cast members. The lineup also includes a music documentary about four-piece girl group Mamamoo's success in the K-pop industry, and season 3 of boy band EXO's reality show “EXO's Travel the World on a Ladder.”
“Our company intends to create a new media ecosystem, led by OTT platforms, by strengthening the well-made lineups through partnerships with different content-related companies,” said Lee Chan-ho, the chief content officer of Wavve.
On the other hand, a new player is expected to debut in the competitive streaming market.
Local media and entertainment company IHQ will launch its own OTT service BABAYO, targeting the short-form content market.
“We believe that the new platform can target the OTT market by providing informative short-form content,” the company said in a release earlier this month.
The new platform will offer 10- to 15-minute video bites to differentiate itself from the existing OTT platforms, as well as its original TV shows like the food variety show “Tasty Guys,” which currently airs on the IHQ network.