HYBE, YG, SM, and JYP gather together…“Preparing to establish a joint venture”

Hybe, YG, SM, JYP, and three other entertainment companies are joining forces to cooperate with the government.

JYP Entertainment, which is led by Park Jin-young, chairman of the Popular Culture Exchange Committee, told YTN star on the 16th, "We are discussing a public-private cooperation model with the government’s Popular Culture Exchange Committee," adding, "In the private sector’s implementation area, the four companies in the Popular Culture Music Division are in the stage of preparing to establish a corporation to promote the Fanomenon event."

According to JYP, the push to establish this joint venture is being discussed as a cooperation model to explore the potential for expanding Korean popular culture, including K-pop, in the global market.

However, it also drew a line by saying, "This matter is at the stage of reviewing the possibility of cooperation," while adding, "We are reviewing a collaboration structure between companies because stable promotion is needed through industry-level cooperation." At present, various procedures, including a corporate combination filing with the Fair Trade Commission, are underway.

It also emphasized again, "There has been no final decision on specific business details or operating methods, and we plan to make careful decisions in the future by comprehensively considering market conditions and various opinions during the discussion process."

The Fanomenon event that the four entertainment companies and the Popular Culture Exchange Committee aim to promote is reportedly planned to take the form of a global K-pop festival. Targeting a 2027 launch, this festival is expected to feature artists from the four major agencies.

Relatedly, Chairman Park had previously expressed his ambitions at the launch ceremony of the Popular Culture Exchange Committee in October last year, saying, "We will hold festivals domestically every year starting in December 2027, and from May 2028 we will expand them into global festivals that tour major cities around the world."

YTN star, Oh Ji-won ([email protected])