"Earning 85 Million Won a Day" Bank Account Verification... This Person Received 20 Billion Won Last Year Alone

Top 10 BJ Stars with 65.6 Billion KRW in Real Earnings from Star Balloons Last Year
1st Place is Commander Zico, Daily Average Income 85 Million KRW
"Management and Sanctions by AfreecaTV and Authorities Needed"

BJs conducting internet broadcasts on AfreecaTV have reportedly earned hundreds of billions of won in revenue annually. In particular, BJ CommanderJiko, who ranked first in earnings, is estimated to have received 20 billion won in net income from Star Balloons alone last year.

Stock account certified by BJ Commander Jiko. Commander Jiko earned over 20 billion KRW in 2023 from star balloons alone.
[Photo by Online Community Capture]

According to data submitted by AfreecaTV on the 7th to the office of Park Chung-kwon, a member of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Communications Committee from the People Power Party, AfreecaTV paid a total of 65.6 billion won to the top 10 BJs in Star Balloon sales last year. This is more than three times the amount compared to 2022 (21.4 billion won).

Except for one, all of the top 10 were operators of 'Excel broadcasts.' Excel broadcasts are streams where BJs organize and publicly display the ranking of donations received through Star Balloon sponsorships in real-time, formatted like an Excel spreadsheet. These broadcasts are hosted by the operators who invite female BJs as guests. The guests mainly promote their sexual appeal through revealing outfits and sexy dances to encourage sponsorship. The operator shares the revenue with the guests based on their contribution after the broadcast.

The BJ who earned the most money last year through this method was CommanderJiko. He received over 360 million Star Balloons last year and exchanged them for more than 20 billion won from AfreecaTV. Star Balloons are paid support items on AfreecaTV broadcasts, priced at 110 won each. BJs who receive Star Balloons can exchange them for cash from AfreecaTV. The exchange rate varies depending on the BJ's grade. Regular BJs receive 60 won per Star Balloon, Best BJs 70 won, and Partner BJs 80 won. Calculating CommanderJiko's income, classified as a popular BJ, it is estimated he earned about 29.1 billion won last year. His average daily income was approximately 85 million won.

CommanderJiko's Star Balloon earnings this year are expected to far exceed last year's revenue. He is reported to have already received over 300 million Star Balloons by August. CommanderJiko recently attracted attention by revealing a stock account containing 6.2 billion won.

With the activation of Excel broadcasts, the distribution payments AfreecaTV gives to BJs have also significantly increased. Distribution payments, which were 153.1 billion won in 2018, reached 475.1 billion won last year. Most of these payments come from Star Balloon revenue. As Star Balloon sales increase, AfreecaTV's performance is also improving. Last year's sales were recorded at 347.6 billion won, a 10.4% increase from the previous year. Operating profit (90.3 billion won) also rose by 9.6% compared to the previous year.

Some critics point out that AfreecaTV's provocative and sensational broadcasts have a negative influence on teenagers. Representative Park stated, "On AfreecaTV, not only is there provocative content, but also abuse of power by BJs mediated through Star Balloons," emphasizing that "AfreecaTV's self-regulation efforts and strict management by authorities are necessary."