Billboard Partners With Kakao Entertainment to Further the Global Expansion of K-Pop

Kakao Entertainment is aiming to accelerate the global expansion of K-pop thanks to a new partnership with Billboard and Billboard Korea.

The company announced that it has signed a partnership agreement with the American music and entertainment magazine to enhance the influence of K-pop worldwide. Joseph Chang, co-CEO of Kakao Entertainment, met with Billboard President Mike Van and Billboard Korea CEO & Publisher Yuna Kim at Kakao Entertainment Seoul offices on Wednesday to have in-depth discussions on how to promote cooperation between all sides as global partners. This is the first time Billboard and Billboard Korea have formed an official partnership concerning K-pop.

“Kakao Entertainment is a key player that works with a rich pool of partners in the K-pop industry and has considerable expertise in content development, production and marketing,” Van and Kim said in a joint statement. “We expect the partnership between our two companies to introduce music fans to the multi-faceted appeal of K-pop.”

This partnership brings together Kakao Entertainment, Billboard and Billboard Korea to build a comprehensive cooperation system for reinforcing the presence and influence of K-pop around the world. The newly formed alliance is expected to open a new chapter in global markets for K-pop, which has enjoyed tremendous popularity and strengthened its position within the music industry.

Kakao Entertainment, Billboard and Billboard Korea will work together to introduce the full spectrum of Korean music and a variety of related content to worldwide fans and push for a far-reaching marketing and promotions campaign to support the global activities of K-pop artists. They will also unveil a new business model in connection with K-pop by marrying Kakao Entertainment’s expertise in the planning, production and marketing of music intellectual property with Billboard’s rich data assets and global influence in the media sector. Billboard plans to leverage this move to ensure that Billboard Korea, which is scheduled to be launched in June, will establish itself successfully and to expand its music portfolio for far greater influence in the global music industry.

“The Korean entertainment industry including K-pop has seen its influence grow in the global market,” said Kakao co-CEO Chang. “The partnership with Billboard, a behemoth in the music scene, will allow K-entertainment to take a big step forward. Kakao Entertainment will strive to demonstrate the unique competitiveness of K-pop in global markets and continue to explore different avenues for the expansion of the industry and its balanced growth worldwide.”

The partnership comes ahead of the launch of Billboard Korea‘s first print issue, which is perfectly timed to the K-pop genre reaching brand-new heights. South Korean acts accounted for five of the top 10 albums in the IFPI Global Album Chart for 2023, including the top spot for SEVENTEEN’s FML, representing the best-ever global charts performance for the genre. Indeed, an unprecedented 19 of the top 20 titles on the tally were K-pop.