YGE to Sell Partial Stake in Studio Plex Amid 'Historical Distortion Controversy'

YG Entertainment announced on the 7th May that it will sell some of its stake in the drama production company Studio Plex by the end of this year. This move comes amid lackluster performance while producing dramas embroiled in controversies over historical distortion.

According to YG Entertainment's business report, the company resolved to sell 60% of its stake in Studio Plex in December of last year, and the sale process is currently underway. Upon completion of the sale, the stake will decrease from 99.9% to 39.9%.

YG Entertainment stated, "In order to establish a sound and competitive business structure that is faithful to our main business, we are pursuing the sale of a portion of our stake in Studio Plex to a production specialist company. We expect that this will improve the production environment at Studio Plex and secure financial stability."

In 2017, YG Entertainment established Studio Plex to diversify its revenue, which had been heavily focused on the music business. They scouted Park Hong-kyun PD, who produced dramas such as 'Queen Seondeok' and 'The Greatest Love'. However, following controversies over historical distortion in dramas produced by Studio Plex, such as 'Joseon Exorcist' and 'Mr. Queen', performance has been lackluster. Studio Plex's revenue and net loss in the previous year were 800 million won and 16.34 million won, respectively, with a debt ratio reaching 800%. source