The largest shareholder of Dreamus Company, which operates the music platform "FLO," has changed to the global fandom corporations BeMyFriends.
Dreamus Company said on the 31st that BeMyFriends secured management control by acquiring the equity held by SK Square, Shinhan Venture Investment, and SM Entertainment for a total of 55 billion won. SK Square, the previous largest shareholder, will become the second-largest shareholder with 22.2% equity.
With this transaction, Dreamus Company's equity structure has been reorganized to ◇ BeMyFriends 31.3% ◇ SK Square 22.2% ◇ Shinhan Venture Investment 9.9% ◇ SM Entertainment 7.1%.
BeMyFriends operates the fandom platform "b.stage," which allows artists and creators to directly run fan communities. It is also working to secure global intellectual property (IP), including the launch of the official membership service for the Netflix animation K-pop Demon Hunters, and as of Sep. it passed the break-even point. During this acquisition process, it raised about 21 billion won from the U.S. venture capital Goodwater Capital.
The two companies plan to strengthen combined synergies between the fandom platform and the music service through this acquisition. They intend to apply b.stage's community and live features to the FLO service and expand user touchpoints by linking Dreamus Company's music, distribution, and concert infrastructure with BeMyFriends' IP.
Dreamus Company turned to an operating profit in the first half of this year, improving its financial structure. It is focusing on core businesses by selling non-core assets and increasing cash equivalents, and recently secured an additional about 22 billion won in cash by selling equity in Beyond Music.
Seo Wooseok, CEO of BeMyFriends, said, "This acquisition is a strategic decision to expand fandom-centered business into the music industry," adding, "Through the combination of the two companies, we will create a new music ecosystem where fans and artists can communicate more closely."
SK Square said, "As the second-largest shareholder, we plan to continue supporting Dreamus Company's growth and the expansion of its global business."