Naver-CJ, 600 Billion 'Blood Alliance'... Joining Forces in Content and Logistics (Comprehensive)

[Asia Economy Reporter Bu Aeri] Naver has made a mutual equity investment worth a total of 600 billion KRW with CJ Group. Naver plans to further strengthen its global competitiveness in the content and logistics sectors through mutual cooperation with CJ Group.

On the 26th, Naver announced that it will exchange mutual shares worth 150 billion KRW each with CJ ENM and Studio Dragon, subsidiaries of CJ Group, and 300 billion KRW with CJ Logistics.

Naver will sell its treasury shares to CJ for the corresponding amount, while CJ ENM and CJ Logistics will sell their treasury shares, and Studio Dragon will proceed via a third-party allotment paid-in capital increase. The share exchange date is the 27th. The paid-in capital increase for Studio Dragon is expected to take about two weeks.

Naver Embarks on Content Experimentation with CJ ENM and Studio Dragon

Naver, CJ ENM, and Studio Dragon plan to combine their intellectual property (IP), platforms, and production capabilities to introduce globally competitive content to the market.

Naver will utilize the IP held by CJ ENM and Studio Dragon, the largest entertainment companies in Korea with world-class production capabilities, to produce immersive and short-form content applying VR (Virtual Reality) and AR (Augmented Reality).

They also plan to jointly establish a fund for content production and creator development, investing 300 billion KRW over three years.

Naver and CJ stated, "Through collaboration between Naver’s global services such as V Live and LINE, and CJ’s platforms like TVING, we will strengthen content distribution not only domestically but also globally."

Naver will also cooperate with TVING. Naver and TVING plan to launch combined membership products to provide new experiences to membership users.

Naver and CJ Logistics Build a 'New Logistics Model'

Naver plans to establish an 'innovative model' with CJ Logistics, which holds the number one courier infrastructure in Korea.

They will digitalize the entire process from order to delivery notification and build a 'smart logistics system' including demand forecasting, logistics automation, optimal route allocation, autonomous driving, and logistics robots.

Additionally, they will discuss detailed plans through a business partnership council and cooperate to discover additional joint business opportunities in promising future fields such as artificial intelligence, big data, and robotics technology.

Han Seong-sook, CEO of Naver, said, "Through collaboration with CJ Group, which has outstanding capabilities in content and logistics, we will provide new experiences and conveniences to users both domestically and internationally. Naver will continue to strengthen cooperation with partners in various fields to enhance competitiveness in the global competitive environment."

Choi Eun-seok, Chief Strategy Officer of CJ, said, "This partnership is a new cooperation paradigm where two companies with outstanding capabilities in their respective fields come together to lead the global competitive market. We will continue to strive to find new growth engines through various forms of open cooperation."