[Public Notice+] Mr.Blue, Webtoon and Game Joint Growth... "Operating Profit of 6.5 Billion KRW in H1, Up 243% YoY"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Mr. Blue announced on the 12th through a public disclosure that its operating profit for the first half of this year, based on consolidated financial statements, reached 6.5 billion KRW, marking a 243.7% increase compared to the same period last year. In the second quarter alone, operating profit recorded 3.6 billion KRW, a 274.2% increase year-on-year.

The core business of online comics and webtoons continues to show strong performance due to the release of new martial arts (sinmu-hyeop) works and an increase in monthly subscription payments. Mr. Blue is producing and servicing new martial arts works targeting younger readers through Orange Studio, a martial arts author training studio. The new martial arts work "Musinjeon-gi," which began service in May, gained popularity among young readers, driving revenue growth in the second quarter.

Monthly subscription payments, which allow unlimited access to online comics including the flagship martial arts genre, also saw a significant increase compared to the same period last year. Despite doubling the monthly subscription price in November last year, existing users continue to subscribe steadily, and the number of new users purchasing monthly subscriptions is also increasing.

The mobile MMORPG "EOS Red," serviced through the subsidiary Blue Potion Games, saw increased revenue in the second quarter due to a large-scale update conducted in April. Just four days after the update, it ranked 10th in the Google Play Store's top-grossing charts, and new users continue to grow steadily on the One Store market, which officially launched in April.

Mr. Seungjin Jo, CEO of Mr. Blue, stated, "We are pleased to achieve the best-ever half-year performance thanks to the combined growth of the online comics, webtoon business, and gaming business," adding, "’EOS Red,’ officially launched last month in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, is receiving favorable reviews among local users, so we can expect overseas sales growth in the gaming division in the second half."