[Into the Stock] D&C Media, The Power of Well-Crafted Webtoon IP

Webtoon 'Nalonejam Level Up' IP Under Animation and Game Production
Popular Webtoon with 1 Million Subscribers in Manga Powerhouse Japan
Gaining Attention as the 'Second Demon Slayer'

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] D&C Media is gaining attention again in the domestic stock market. The drama "The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate," based on a web novel, is gaining popularity, causing the value of its globally renowned intellectual property (IP) to soar dramatically.

According to the financial investment industry on the 15th, D&C Media's stock price has risen about 78% in two months since hitting its yearly low on October 13. The stock price continues to show a steady upward trend, supported by expectations of a significant profit increase next year.

D&C Media is a supplier of web novel and webtoon content. CEO Shin Hyun-ho, the largest shareholder, holds a 30.17% stake. Including shares held by his spouse, the largest shareholder group owns 46.2%. Kakao Entertainment is the second-largest shareholder with a 23.13% stake.

D&C Media owns the webtoon IP "Solo Leveling." It has achieved a cumulative global view count of 14.2 billion. In Japan, a powerhouse in comics and animation, one million people subscribe to "Solo Leveling." It has become the top hit on Piccoma, Japan's number one mobile comic platform. Animation and game releases are forthcoming. A1 Pictures, an animation studio under Aniplex, a Japanese video planning group, is producing an animation scheduled for release next year. Netmarble Neo is developing "Solo Leveling: ARISE" as a role-playing game (RPG), with Netmarble distributing the game.

Yoon Ye-ji, a researcher at Hana Securities, said, "Based on past failures of webtoon-based animations and games, we are collaborating with specialized companies in each field," adding, "We expect different results from past cases." She further stated, "We anticipate D&C Media to achieve operating profits between 20 billion and 30 billion KRW next year."

D&C Media recorded operating revenue of 47.3 billion KRW and operating profit of 4.9 billion KRW through the third quarter this year. Considering last year's operating profit of 15.1 billion KRW, which set a record high, expectations for next year's performance are high.

The reason for focusing on story IPs like webtoons and web novels domestically is multifaceted. As competition among online video service (OTT) providers intensifies, content production leveraging verified IPs has become active. This drives up the value of popular IPs. Moreover, the success of the comic "Demon Slayer" in Japan, a comic powerhouse, has also contributed to the rising IP value. The movie "Demon Slayer: Mugen Train," released in October 2020, earned over 500 billion KRW worldwide. The console game "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba ? The Hinokami Chronicles," released last October, has sold over two million copies.

Lee Ki-hoon, a researcher at Hana Securities, analyzed, "It has been eight years since the comic platform Piccoma started offering Korean original IPs in Japan," adding, "It is necessary to pay attention to IPs that transform into animations and games, which have two to three times the sales potential of webtoon transaction revenue."