SM Entertainment’s bold move marks a critical shift in the entertainment landscape of South Korea that can have global implications as well.
On March 14, SM Entertainment (SM) announced that it had acquired KeyEast, one of Korea’s largest actor management companies. The acquisition took place after the SM bought the shares of founder and actor Bae Yong-joon’s. As the (former) largest shareholder of KeyEast, SM’s move essentially made them the owners of the acting management agency. Currently, SM owns 31 percent of the company’s shares, Bae Yong-Joon 28.8 percent, and Fox Video Limited owns around 6 percent.
As a result, all of the actors signed to KeyEast including Kim Soo-hyun, Uhm Jung-hwa, Lee Da-in and several dozens other artists. Meanwhile, Bea Yong-joon will serve as KeyEasts marketing and global strategy advisor. Moreover, he will also proceed with the companies diverse business strategies.
Additionally, SM now owns Digital Adventures (DA), Japan’s largest provider of Korean Wave content, which is a subsidiary of KeyEast. Other subsidiaries of KeyEast include Music K Entertainment where trot singer Hong Jin-young is housed and Content Y. Actors under Content Y include Park Seo-jun, Goo Hara, Hong Soo-hyun and more.
Why It Matters
Currently, SM it is the biggest and most influential entertainment agency in South Korea, housing some of the most prominent names in Korean popular culture. A few artists signed to SM include EXO, Super Junior, Girls’ Generation (SNSD), NCT, SHINee, F(x), Red Velvet, and many more.
However, as SM continues to expand and incorporate more talent and enterprises into their fold, the more the company begins to resemble a monopoly. As it already stands, small agencies and musical acts can bearly make a dent in the market; a success story like BTS is an exception, not a rule.
On the other hand, the inclusion of the numerous actors current signed to KeyEast into SM Group, bolsters an underwhelming segment of entertainment agency. Through this acquisition, KeyEast is expected to integrate into SM while continuing to maintain their reputation and identity. Further, they will continue to support the broader activities of their actors while making use of SM’s global network.
The support and network that SM provides is the crux of this merger. Artist media event, fan clubs, performances formerly conducted by KeyEast and DA are expected to generate stronger, wider, and under SM. Moreover, in conjunction with other mobile and online platform businesses connected to SM, there will be a definitive aim to diversify the audiences of KeyEast’s talent that targets not only Korea but also the global market.
As a result, with the support of SM Entertainment, the dozen’s of actors under KeyEast may have a more direct path to acting in larger, global projects. One day soon, news such as Ma Dong-seok being offered a role in a huge American franchise won’t be out-of-the-ordinary, but ordinary
Translated by O.C
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