YG Entertainment successfully turned a profit in the second quarter operating income, thanks to the performances of TREASURE and BABYMONSTER pulled from its jewel box. This achievement is significant as it represents a successful generational shift to TREASURE and BABYMONSTER following BIGBANG, 2NE1, WINNER, and BLACKPINK.
On the 8th, YG Entertainment announced that its consolidated operating profit for the second quarter of this year was 8.4 billion won, marking a turnaround from an operating loss of 11 billion won during the same period last year.
This operating profit exceeded the market forecast of 3.1 billion won compiled by Yonhap Infomax by 170.9%. Revenue was 100.4 billion won, an 11.6% increase compared to the same period last year, while net profit returned to the black at 11.2 billion won.
YG Entertainment pointed to BABYMONSTER's world tour and TREASURE's U.S. fan concert tour as factors for the turnaround to profitability. YG Entertainment explained that "the performance of lower-tier IP (intellectual property) global tours is driving profitability."
It is particularly impressive that, despite no album releases in the second quarter, sales from performances, digital content, and merchandise (goods) increased, maintaining a stable growth trend. The success of TREASURE and BABYMONSTER in continuing the legacy of their agency's predecessors, such as BIGBANG, 2NE1, WINNER, and BLACKPINK, is encouraging.
TREASURE held their fan concert "SPECIAL MOMENT" in Brooklyn, Washington D.C., Oakland, and Los Angeles in April. Strengthening their global presence, TREASURE is continuing their U.S. tour starting with a concert in Seoul and has left their first footprint in the U.S., which is considered one of the two major music markets in the world, having successfully completed a fan concert tour spanning a total of 17 performances in 9 cities, including Hyogo, Aichi, Fukuoka, and Saitama.
BABYMONSTER is meeting global fans through their first world tour "HELLO MONSTERS," which is being held in 21 cities and 32 performances, starting with Seoul on January 25 and 26, followed by North America, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh, Bangkok, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, and Toronto, just one year after their debut. The world tour has also been expanding in size, adding more performances amid strong support, filling arena-sized venues in Newark and Los Angeles, which accommodate over 10,000 people each during their first North American tour. Additionally, they attracted a total of 150,000 people in Japan, setting the record for the "fastest period for a K-pop girl group with the most audience."
The pop-up store for TREASURE and BABYMONSTER held in China was also a great success. With TREASURE and BABYMONSTER expanding their global influence in Asia and North America, and YG's turnaround to profitability, they have established themselves as suitable candidates to lead the future global trend of K-pop.
Having gained momentum, YG Entertainment has hinted at the activities of its artists in the second half of the year. BABYMONSTER plans to continue with significant activities this semester, including the release of a second pre-released song in September and a mini-album in October, while TREASURE is set to release their third mini-album "LOVE PULSE" on September 1 and confirmed their "TREASURE TOUR [PULSE ON]" tour for October. There is keen interest in the future endeavors of these groups, who are growing robustly after coming out of the jewel box.
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