(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Lee Tae-soo = Weverse announced on the 17th that 12 teams of artists under SM Entertainment, including the girl group aespa and the group NCT, will join HYBE's fan community platform, Weverse, by September.

This measure follows the agreement reached last month for HYBE to withdraw from the acquisition of SM and engage in "platform cooperation" with Kakao.

SM and Weverse did not disclose the specific names of the artists joining the platform.

However, considering the current roster of SM artists, it is understood that virtually everyone, from first-generation artists like Kangta and BoA to EXO, NCT, and aespa, will be joining.
 

Even after these SM artists join Weverse, they will maintain the fan communication platform "Bubble" that they have been using.

This is because Bubble focuses on one-on-one interactive paid communication, so its domain does not overlap with Weverse, which is a free public communication platform.

SM artists will also migrate their fan clubs from the existing "KWANGYA CLUB" to Weverse's "Membership Service," and will also join the Weverse Shop, where they can purchase CD albums and MD (merchandise). They will also utilize the video live service "Weverse Live."

HYBE expects that the effect of expanding Weverse's IP (intellectual property) will be maximized as all SM 1st to 4th generation artists who were using "KWANGYA CLUB" will join Weverse.

SM stated, "In the future, we will sell albums and MDs on Weverse Shop in addition to 'SMTOWN & STORE' and existing sales sites, making it easier to purchase SM products," adding, "This will also contribute to an increase in sales and revenue."

They also emphasized, "By providing services that combine community, media content, and commerce through Weverse in addition to Bubble, we will strengthen the contact points between artists and fandoms and effectively realize the 'SM 3.0' strategy to expand the global fandom."

The music industry predicts that with the entry of SM artists, Weverse will rapidly increase its global users and solidify its position as the number one platform in the fan community sector.

A music industry official predicted, "With aespa and NCT at the forefront, global fandoms such as TVXQ and Super Junior, which still possess strong fandoms in Japan and elsewhere, can flow into Weverse," adding, "Considering the characteristics of the platform business where paid service payments increase as users and their activity levels increase, Weverse's growth will also accelerate."

Weverse currently has 65 million subscribers covering 245 countries and regions around the world.

Lee Sun-hwa, a researcher at KB Securities, predicted in a corporate analysis report on the 13th, "As the pipeline of artists joining Weverse expands, not only is an improvement in Weverse's performance expected, but also an increase in platform value due to rising traffic."

These are English translations of articles from our GTTOUR Japanese website.