YG Entertainment Turns a Profit in Q1 with 9.5 Billion Won Operating Income

Strong Performance by Treasure and Babymonster
BLACKPINK Tour to Begin in the Second Half of the Year

YG Entertainment announced on May 9 that its consolidated operating profit for the first quarter of this year reached 9.525 billion won, turning a profit compared to the same period last year. In the first quarter of last year, the company had posted an operating loss of over 7 billion won.

Revenue for the first quarter of this year was 100.2 billion won, a 14.7% increase compared to the same period last year (87.3 billion won).

This strong performance was driven by the growth in scale of younger intellectual properties (IP) such as Treasure and Babymonster, in which YG Entertainment has been strategically investing since last year. Sales of Treasure's new release and Babymonster's full-length album were strong. The company explained that profitability was secured through the growth of its overseas concert business and increased sales of merchandise (MD) linked to these activities.

For the second half of this year, YG Entertainment is planning to launch a BLACKPINK tour, as well as new album releases and tours for Treasure and Babymonster. In particular, the company aims to achieve continued growth by responding quickly to recent changes in the Chinese market, where expectations have been rising.