Naver and Kakao's 'Webtoon War'

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] The curtain has risen on the 'webtoon war' between Kakao and Naver. Kakao has launched ‘Kakao Webtoon’ while Naver is establishing ‘Wattpad Webtoon Studio,’ intensifying the fierce competition between the two companies to dominate the market.

◆ "Will be a game changer" Kakao declares war = According to industry sources on the 28th, Kakao Entertainment unveiled the ‘Kakao Webtoon Premiere’ website yesterday to allow users to experience Kakao Webtoon ahead of its domestic launch scheduled for the 1st of next month.

The Kakao Webtoon platform offers a vivid user experience (UX) from the start to the end of app usage, unlike existing webtoon platforms. To maximize the value of the core element of webtoons?the artwork?characters within Kakao Webtoon are implemented in a way that makes them appear to move and come to life.

Additionally, this platform is designed to allow content to expand infinitely. Intellectual property (IP) is displayed endlessly in all directions?up, down, left, and right.

This platform was created from the design stage with the global market in mind. It is designed for easy global expansion, and the app is optimized so that Kakao Webtoon can be enjoyed without significant network restrictions in any country.

Based on this unique platform, Kakao Webtoon has declared its intention to become a ‘game changer’ that will reshape the webtoon industry landscape. It has issued a declaration of war against its ‘rival,’ Naver Webtoon.

Currently, Naver dominates the domestic market. According to the ‘2020 Webtoon Business Survey’ released by the Korea Creative Content Agency, Naver Webtoon's page view share accounts for 65.1% of the entire market, a figure significantly higher than the combined share of Kakao Page (15.6%) and Daum Webtoon (3.9%), which together form Kakao Webtoon.

Naver Webtoon has long been focusing on overseas markets. In May, Naver acquired all shares of the world’s largest web novel platform, Wattpad, for $600 million (approximately 650 billion KRW). Recently, Naver merged Naver Webtoon Studio and Wattpad Studio to establish ‘Wattpad Webtoon Studio.’ Naver plans to invest in Wattpad Webtoon Studio by raising a global IP business fund worth 100 billion KRW.

They will focus on adapting popular IPs into video content, primarily targeting North America. On the 22nd, during the Q2 earnings conference call, Naver CEO Han Seong-sook stated, "Through the establishment of a 100 billion KRW fund, we plan to accelerate the adaptation of IPs proven successful by Wattpad Webtoon into video and publishing formats," adding, "We will also improve the profitability of the IP business and rapidly expand Naver’s global content ecosystem."

◆ The battleground is ‘content’ = Industry insiders believe that ultimately, the competition between the two companies will be decided by content competitiveness. The key is how many excellent contents they can secure and provide.

Naver Webtoon has begun exclusive serialization of Marvel Comics’ popular title ‘Black Widow.’ This is the first series of the ‘Marvel Webtoon Project,’ a world-first title that reimagines the original Marvel Comics, boasting over 80 years of history, into a webtoon scroll format. This project was realized through collaboration between Marvel Comics, which has continuously shown interest in the webtoon genre, Naver Webtoon, and Sigongsa, the official Marvel publisher in Korea.

Starting with ‘Black Widow,’ Naver Webtoon plans to continuously release Marvel Comics series as webtoons in collaboration with Sigongsa. From September, original comics of upcoming movies such as ‘Eternals,’ scheduled for release in November, as well as ‘Avengers,’ ‘Spider-Man,’ and ‘Hulk,’ will be available on Naver Webtoon and Naver Series.

Leading Naver Webtoon creators such as Lee Dong-geon of ‘Yumi’s Cells,’ Jo Seok of the legendary webtoon ‘The Sound of Your Heart,’ and Kim Gyu-sam of ‘Cheap Cheonlima Mart’ have recently returned with new comedy works, strengthening Naver Webtoon’s lineup.

On Kakao Webtoon, a large number of ‘premium IPs’ discovered through aggressive investment over the past few years will be serviced. This includes renowned original webtoon IPs previously showcased on Daum Webtoon and Kakao Page such as ‘Solo Leveling,’ ‘Charlotte Has Five Disciples,’ ‘My ID is Gangnam Beauty,’ ‘Space Sweepers,’ ‘Abimulssang,’ and ‘SSS-Class Suicide Hunter.’ Original new works will also be sequentially introduced on Kakao Webtoon in the future.

A Kakao Webtoon representative said, "New works by prominent creators such as Neonbee & Caramel, Jang Yi, Jiddung, Jogumsan, Bori, and Minhong are also in preparation," adding, "We will continue to systematically adapt popular web novels like ‘Temppal,’ ‘King of the Grave Robbers,’ and ‘Moonlight Sculptor’ into novel comics."