Started with 6 KakaoTalk Emoticons
Grown to 300,000 in 10 Years
Studio Opened in 2017
Path Opened for Anyone to Become a Creator
Over 10,000 Industry Workers
Launched 'Emoticon Plus'
Unlimited Service for 3,900 KRW/Month
Creators Expect Stable Income
Emoticons, which play the role of a spice in online conversations, have grown into a massive ecosystem with a market size of 700 billion KRW. KakaoTalk was the first to actively spread the emoticon ecosystem in South Korea. Launched in 2011 and celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, KakaoTalk emoticons are aiming for a new leap forward by introducing subscription models and more.
Over 10,000 Workers... The Economics of Emoticons
According to Kakao on the 13th, the number of people working in the emoticon industry, including emoticon creators, reaches 10,000. The cumulative number of sent emoticons is 220 billion. Kim Ji-hyun, head of Kakao’s Digital Item Team overseeing the emoticon business, said in an interview with Asia Economy, "In the early days, emoticons were created at the request of webtoon artists, but as the market grew, we now receive about 5,000 applications every month."
As the emoticon ecosystem expanded, Kakao opened the ‘Kakao Emoticon Studio’ in 2017 and created a system where anyone can propose emoticons if they wish. The number of emoticons, which was six at the beginning, now reaches around 300,000 individual emoticons. The number of employees working on emoticon-related tasks at Kakao has also increased significantly from about 10 in the early days to around 200.
Kakao allows anyone to submit proposals without restrictions. Kakao reviews the proposals through a separate screening committee to assess their marketability and commercializes them. The youngest emoticon creator is 12 years old, and the oldest is 81, showing a wide age range. With this system in place, many people have become full-time emoticon creators. Apoi, a creator who graduated from an engineering school, quit his job to draw emoticons and currently works as an emoticon artist, having created over 100 emoticons.
Emoticons Expanded Through Subscription Models
Ten years ago, it was difficult to earn income by drawing pictures. Kakao opened a market where creators can draw, launch products, and generate revenue through the emoticon ecosystem. Kim said, "Creators who can make a living full-time have emerged, companies have been established, and those companies create new jobs, thus creating an industry. Making a new industry economically significant is very meaningful for Kakao." Five KakaoTalk emoticons have achieved cumulative sales exceeding 10 billion KRW, 43 emoticons have surpassed 5 billion KRW, and 92 have exceeded 1 billion KRW. There are 1,392 emoticons with cumulative sales over 100 million KRW.
The company has also greatly benefited from emoticons. Kakao’s representative character ‘Ryan’ is used in various services and products, earning the affectionate nickname ‘Executive Director Ryan’ within the company. The emoticon business is one of the few revenue-generating ventures alongside gifting in the free KakaoTalk messenger service.
Kakao plans to further expand the ecosystem by growing the emoticon subscription model. ‘Emoticon Plus,’ introduced by Kakao this year, is a service that allows unlimited use of emoticons for 3,900 KRW per month. The launch of this service has also increased creators’ earnings. Whereas previously new products generated a large amount of revenue temporarily, now the combination of older and new products creates a steady revenue stream. The service has been experienced by 10 million users. Kim emphasized, "We plan to grow the subscription market through Emoticon Plus," adding, "In the long term, we want to make emoticons an essential element that adds flavor to conversations like salt."
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