Kakao Entertainment

• Name — Kakao Entertainment Corp. • Native Name — 주식회사 카카오엔터테인먼트 • Type — Subsidiary • Industry — * Music • entertainment • Hq Location — Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea • Area Served — Worldwide • Revenue Year — 2025 • Net Income Year — 2025 • Assets Year — 2025 • Equity Year — 2025 • Parent — Kakao • Subsidiaries — See subsidiaries

Podotree Co, Ltd. was founded on July 20, 2010, as a subsidiary of Kakao, and launched KakaoPage three years later. On August 1, 2018, the company changed its corporate name to KakaoPage Corp.

Seoul Records, Inc. was established in October 1978 by Min Young-bin, the founder of South Korea's leading educational company YBM Group (formerly Sisa English). In 2005, the company was acquired by SK Telecom and relaunched as LOEN Entertainment, Inc. three years later, before being sold to Star Invest Holdings (a subsidiary of Affinity Equity Partners). In January 2016, it was taken over by Kakao and renamed again as Kakao M Corp. in December 2017. In October 2020, the company expanded in Asia by launching a Thailand-based subsidiary called Kakao M Asia (Private) Co., Ltd. (currently Kakao Entertainment Asia Co., Ltd.).

In December 2020, KakaoPage Corp. proposed a merger with Kakao M Corp. as a unified company. It was seen as an action by their parent company against US-based Google's new policy for its app market place users, which would've affected Kakao M, which KakaoTV platform was starting to become popular in South Korea. Both companies announced the plans and timeline for their merger, as well as the proposed name for the unified company Kakao Entertainment Corp on January 25, 2021. Under the plans, KakaoPage Corp. is the surviving entity. The merger was completed on March 1, and Kakao Entertainment was formally founded a day later. Kakao Entertainment acquired Radish Fiction, a serialized fiction app cofounded by Lee Seung-yoon, for $440 million in May 2021. On July 15, it was announced that Kakao Entertainment and Melon Company would be merging, with the merger expected to be complete in September 2021. On September 17, Kakao Entertainment announced that Play M Entertainment and Cre.ker Entertainment would be merging in the future. On November 12, it was announced that the company's new corporate name would be IST Entertainment, which took effect on November 1.

Headed by co-CEO Joy Lee, the Kakao Entertainment's Page Company is in charge of the company's web fiction publishing and web development business. It is situated in Pangyo, Seongnam in Gyeonggi Province.

Headed by co-CEO Stephan Kim, the Kakao Entertainment's M Company is in charge of the company's entertainment and mass media business. Its headquarters is in Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu in Seoul.

• AdPage • Daon Creative • KW Books • Kiwi Vine • RS Media • Radish Media • Samyang C&C • Soundist Entertainment • Tapas Media • Yeondam

• Antenna Music • EDAM Entertainment • High Up Entertainment • Starship Entertainment • Starship X • Highline Entertainment

• Awesome ENT • BH Entertainment • J.Wide Company • King Kong by Starship • Management SOOP • Ready Entertainment • VAST Entertainment & Media

• 3Y Corporation • Baram Pictures • Dolphiners Films • GRAYGO • Maison de Baja • Kross Pictures • Logos Film • Mega Monster • Moonlight Film • ootb Studio • Sanai Pictures • Shownote • Story & Pictures Media • Studio K11O • Zip Cinema

• Jungsuck Building (Seoul) - headquarters of the Kakao Entertainment M Company • The Kakao Entertainment M Company also owns a building at Samseong-dong in Seoul, where the headquarters of IST Entertainment and Flex M are located.

• 1theK • 1theK Live • 1theK Originals • 1theK Style (coming soon) • Berriz • KakaoPage • KakaoPage Indonesia (formerly Neobazar) (Indonesia) • KakaoTV • Kakao Webtoon • Kakao Webtoon (South Korea) (formerly Daum Webtoon) • Kakao Webtoon (Indonesia) • Kakao Webtoon (Taiwan) • Kakao Webtoon (Thailand) • Melon • Muse (mobile audition application) • Radish (US) • Wuxiaworld (US) • Tapas (US)

Drama credits of Kakao Entertainment and its subsidiaries • Year — Title — Network — Credited as — Reference • English — Korean/Other language — Screenwriter — Director — Producer • 2021 — Dr. Brain — Dr. 브레인 — Apple TV+ — * Kim Jin-a * Koh Young-jae * Lee Moo-so * Kim Jee-woon — Kim Jee-woon — * Kakao Entertainment * Bound Entertainment * Dark Circle Pictures * StudioPlex • 2022 — Business Proposal — 사내맞선 — SBS TV — * Han Seol-hee * Hong Bo-hee — Park Seon-ho — * Kakao Entertainment * Kross Pictures • Roppongi Class — 六本木クラス / 롯폰기 클라쓰 — TV Asahi — Koji Tokuo — * Naomi Tamura * Naomi Kinoshita — * Kakao Entertainment * Kross Pictures * TV Asahi * SLL * As Birds • 2023 — The Worst of Evil — 최악의 악 — Disney+ — Jang Min-suk — Han Dong-wook — * Kakao Entertainment * Baram Pictures * Sanai Pictures • Castaway Diva — 무인도의 디바 — tvN — * Park Hye-ryun * Eun Yeol — Oh Chung-hwan — * Kakao Entertainment * Baram Pictures • 2023-2024 — Gyeongseong Creature — 경성크리처 — Netflix — Kang Eun-kyung — * Chung Dong-yoon * Roh Young-sub * Jo Young-min (television director) — * Kakao Entertainment * Story & Pictures Media * Studio Dragon • 2025 — Secret Relationships — 비밀사이 — * Watcha * Heavenly — Lee Yoo-jin — Yang Kyung-hee — * Kakao Entertainment * Playlist Studio * Fuji Television • Karma — 악연 — Netflix — Lee Il-hyung — Lee Il-hyung — * Kakao Entertainment * Baram Pictures * Moonlight Film • Crushology 101 — 바니와 오빠들 — MBC TV — * Sung So-eun * Lee Sul — Kim Ji-hoon — Kakao Entertainment • Nine Puzzles — 나인 퍼즐 — Disney+ — Lee Eun-mi — * Yoon Jong-bin * Kim Jung-ho — * Kakao Entertainment * Moonlight Film • You and Everything Else — 은중과 상연 — Netflix — Song Hye-jin — Jo Young-min — Kakao Entertainment • 2026 — Boyfriend on Demand — 월간남친 — Netflix — Namgung Do-young — Kim Jung-sik — * Kakao Entertainment * Baram Pictures * WhyNot Media • Still Shining — 샤이닝 — JTBC — Lee Sook-yeon — Kim Yoon-jin — * Kakao Entertainment * SLL JoongAng • Perfect Crown — 21세기 대군 부인 — MBC TV — Yoo Ah-in — * Park Joon-hwa * Bae Hee-young — * Kakao Entertainment * Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation • The Wonderfools — 원더풀스 — Netflix — Heo Da-joong — Yoo In-sik — * Kakao Entertainment * Fantagio * Nangmancrew • TBA — Solo Leveling — 나 혼자만 레벨업 — Netflix — * Lee Hae-jun * Kim Byung-seo * Kang San — * Lee Hae-jun * Kim Byung-seo — * Kakao Entertainment * Sanai Pictures

Drama credits of Baram Pictures • Year — Title — Network — Credited as — Reference • English — Korean/Other language — Screenwriter — Director — Producer • 2021 — Kingdom: Ashin of the North — 킹덤: 아신전 — Netflix — Kim Eun-hee — Kim Seong-hun — * Baram Pictures * Studio Dragon * B.A. Entertainment • Jirisan — 지리산 — tvN — Kim Eun-hee — Lee Eung-bok — * Baram Pictures * Studio Dragon * AStory • 2022 — Behind Every Star — 연예인 매니저로 살아남기 — tvN — * Park So-young * Lee Chan — Baek Seung-ryong — * Baram Pictures * Studio Dragon • 2023 — Race (web series) — 레이스 — Disney+ — * Lee Dong-yoon * Han Jin-sun — * Baram Pictures * Slingshot Studios • Not Others — 남남 — * Genie TV * ENA — Min Seon-ae — Lee Min-woo — * Baram Pictures * SYN&studio (formerly Arc Media) • Song of the Bandits — 도적: 칼의 소리 — Netflix — Han Jung-hoon — * Hwang Jun-hyeok * Park Hyun-suk — * Baram Pictures * Studio Dragon * Urban Works Media • 2024 — When the Phone Rings — 지금 거신 전화는 — MBC TV — Kim Ji-woon — * Park Sang-woo * Wi Deuk-gyu — * Baram Pictures * Bon Factory • 2025 — When Life Gives You Tangerines — 폭싹 속았수다 — Netflix — Lim Sang-choon — Kim Won-seok — * Baram Pictures * Pan Entertainment • Walking on Thin Ice — 은수 좋은 날 — KBS 2TV — Jeon Young-shin — Song Hyun-wook — * Baram Pictures * Slingshot Studios

Drama credits of Sanai Pictures • Year — Title — Network — Credited as — Reference • English — Korean/Other language — Screenwriter — Director — Producer • 2024 — Gangnam B-Side — 강남 비-사이드 — Disney+ — * Joo Won-gyu * Park Noo-ri — Park Noo-ri — * Sanai Pictures * Plus M Entertainment * Story Rooftop

• Kakao Entertainment Page Company: Twosun World Building 8/F, 221, Pangyoyeok-ro, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea • Kakao Entertainment M Company: Jungsuck Building, 17, Teheran-ro 103-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea

• Tachiyomi, A free and open-source Manga, Manhwa etc. reader app, was forced to stop development after Kakao Entertainment issued a cease-and-desist letter to the developers. • ReaperScan, A free and fan translated Manhwa and Web Novel site, was forced to shutdown after Kakao Entertainment issued a cease-and-desist letter to the site admin. • Kotatsu, a free and open-source manga reader for Android, announced its shutdown in November 2025, following "threatening actions" from Kakao Entertainment and changes to Google's sideloading policies.