Technological Advancement in Webtoon Industry: YNC&S and YLAB Form Strategic Alliance
YN Culture & Space (CEO Hae-Min Yoo) and Kosdaq-listed company YLAB (CEO Jun-Kyung Shim) announced on the 26th that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish a cooperative framework for mutual development. This collaboration will focus on streamlining webtoon video production using new video solutions and expanding physical space business utilizing webtoon intellectual property (IP).
YNC&S is a joint venture established to lead the content industry by leveraging the IPs and technological expertise of its founding companies, YG Entertainment, Naver, Nexon, WYSIWYG Studios, and NP. The company focuses on developing new video solutions and creating future-oriented content production spaces in fields such as K-POP, gaming, web, VFX, and XR.
YLAB is a content production company known for webtoons like Naver Webtoon’s "True Education" and dramas such as TVING original "Island." It was listed on the Kosdaq market in July last year. YLAB aims to expand its business using its accumulated hit IPs and grow as a production company in Asia, including Japan and Vietnam.
Through this agreement, the two companies will maximize synergy by focusing on:
The use of YNC&S's cutting-edge technologies, including virtual production and generative AI, to streamline the video production process and create live-action adaptations of webtoons.
Joint research and development, as well as the pursuit of government-supported projects.
Development of space businesses utilizing YLAB’s flagship IPs and OSMU (One Source Multi-Use) business development, applying new formats such as VR.
As a signal of this collaboration, the two companies were selected as research institutions for the '2024 Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism R&D Project' [Co-pilot technology development for automatic 3D webtoon completion based on generative AI] (Research funding: 3.8 billion KRW | Research period: 3 years) by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister In-Chon Yoo) and the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA, President Hyun-Rae Cho). They will actively collaborate on R&D to establish a future-oriented webtoon production process using AI technology.
Additionally, YLAB expressed its intent to lead the transmedia video production market by implementing virtual production and advanced new technologies throughout the entire production process, from the initial planning and development (pre-production) stages. This includes the realization of the worldviews of its IPs such as <Jungle Juice> and <Burning Hell> through transmedia.
Hae-Min Yoo, CEO of YNC&S, stated, "We are delighted to have the opportunity to expand webtoon IPs into various forms through new technologies." Jun-Kyung Shim, CEO of YLAB, mentioned, "We aim to expand the application of new technologies in drama production through our cooperation with YNC&S and provide our webtoon fans with experiences in spaces enhanced by these technologies." Based on this agreement, the two companies plan to undertake more innovative and creative projects, strengthening their competitiveness in the global market.
