[NE Coffee Chat] The Platform ‘Shortplex’ Offering Addictive ‘Short-Form Dramas’ You Can’t Stop Watching Once You Start

'Short-Form Dramas' Showing Rapid Growth Worldwide
High Engagement with 1-4 Minute Episodes
Shortplex Introduces Short-Form Dramas to Domestic Consumers
"We Will Grow into a Comprehensive Short-Form Entertainment Platform"

As soon as the drama begins, the mother-in-law slaps the heroine's cheek. The protagonist, a daughter-in-law of a chaebol family, packs her bags and builds her own business, confronting her mother-in-law head-on. These events unfold within just three minutes.

This is the content of a short-form drama, which is rapidly growing mainly in China and the United States. Short-form dramas are 1 to 4 minutes long and consist of 30 to 100 episodes, with a completely different grammar from traditional dramas. As the related market begins to grow domestically, the comprehensive short-form content service company Shortplex has launched its service.

Noh Hyung-jun, CEO of Shortplex, is being interviewed by Asia Economy. Photo by Lee Seung-jin

On the 24th, Na Hyeongjun, CEO of Shortplex, stated in an interview with Asia Economy, “We are introducing a short-form entertainment platform that comprehensively provides various formats of short-form content such as short-form dramas, animations, and games.” Established in January this year, Shortplex officially launched its platform after about a year of preparation.

CEO Na explained, “If other platforms offering short-form dramas aim to be the Netflix of short-form content, Shortplex can be thought of as a space combining Netflix and TikTok,” adding, “It is a comprehensive short-form content platform where users can watch entertaining videos, communicate with others, and even compete.”

Shortplex is initially focusing on providing short-form dramas. Short-form dramas are experiencing rapid growth worldwide. As of 2023, the Chinese short-form drama market size is 6.7 trillion KRW, with over 1 billion viewers. China's short-form drama platform Lilshort has gained global popularity, ranking third overall in the US App Store.

CEO Na predicted that short-form dramas will also become popular domestically. He said, “It is easy to understand short-form dramas as live-action versions of webtoons, which are very popular in Korea,” adding, “The immersion at every moment is high, and viewers cannot resist watching the next episode, so it will do well in the domestic market.”

CEO Na cited Shortplex’s strong understanding of short-form dramas and its unique platform features that can attract loyal customers as its strengths. Currently, China is the main producer of short-form dramas. Having lived in China for 10 years, CEO Na was able to closely observe the industry structure of short-form content.

He said, “Among domestic operators, I believe we have the highest understanding of short-form dramas, but this advantage may not be effective in the next one to two years,” and explained, “Afterward, we will expand the market by supplying content that targets domestic consumers’ tastes.”

Additionally, Shortplex is characterized by incorporating gamification (applying game mechanisms and mindsets to non-game fields such as knowledge delivery, behavior and interest inducement, or marketing) throughout its service.

CEO Na said, “Many short-form drama platforms rely heavily on consumers drawn in by one-time marketing,” adding, “Shortplex incorporates gamification, allowing users to compete and win prizes, naturally encouraging users to visit our platform.”

Shortplex’s ultimate goal is to directly produce short-form content. CEO Na stated, “We plan to produce and distribute fresh and interesting drama and entertainment content in the first half of 2025,” adding, “Our goal is to export these works overseas and create secondary productions using intellectual property (IP).”