Webtoon goes public to become an IP giant

The Future. Last Thursday, mobile webcomic giant Webtoon went public on the Nasdaq, hitting a valuation of over $2.7 billion… giving the LA-based company the runway to expand its ambitions in Hollywood and the international entertainment industry. As the superhero genre loses some of its vice grip on culture, and anime and manga skyrocket in popularity, studios and streamers could turn to Webtoon as a go-to platform to mine IP for a global audience.

Marvel of webcomics
Webtoon, already a hit in Asia and North America, has 55 million titles on its platform — mostly “teenaged demo, non-superhero genres,” per THR — from 24 million creators.

That has Hollywood calling.

• Half of Netflix’s productions in South Korea are based on Webtoon IP, including Hellbound and All of Us Are Dead.
• Oscar-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody is producing an adaptation of Webtoon IP titled Death of a Pop Star, and Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment is making one of Freaking Romance.
• The company hopes to multiply the number of comics being adapted for Hollywood and other entertainment formats — only 10% of its revenue comes from adaptations, so there’s plenty of room for growth.

Webtoon already has a massive fanbase of 170 million active monthly users, which the company mines for data like who they are, what they’re reading, and where they live.

In other words, the perfect audience profile on how to market adaptations of Webtoon’s comics around the world.