Weverse, the super-fan platform of K-pop giant HYBE, will launch a series of new, more expensive membership tiers for users on December 1.
Weverse subscribers currently pay approximately $24 per year Enjoy benefits including exclusive content and announcements from their favorite artists.
according to korea heraldnew Weavers The launch – dubbed “Digital Membership” – will upsell new tiers to fans, priced from $2 to $4 per monthwhich will provide additional benefits such as offline access to music and ad-free video streaming.
However, there is a problem HYBE’s Dear music rights holders.
According to a source herald, move Partner brands have been informed who uses Weavers it will remain at 30% and 60% Earnings from new membership programs, depending on level. (The partner label will be in 40% and 70% money.
Some 130 partner tags Learn about the new subscription plan and terms in an email on September 26th.
this herald They were also told the terms were mandatory, the report said.
Weverse is seen by many in the music industry as one of the major efforts to monetize superfans, a segment of the music audience willing to pay more to get exclusive content and develop closer relationships with their favorite artists.
In the five years since its launch, the platform has grown to include a number of 10 million Monthly Active Users (MAU), HYBE has been busy lately expanding the platform beyond K-pop. ariana grande and laroy boy is one of the Western artists to join the platform in recent months.
News earlier this year further fueled interest in the platform: universal music group Will invest in Weverse.
In August, Weverse announced it would launch a subscription membership for artists.
The membership service, which will be launched in the fourth quarter of this year, will be separate from the existing fan club memberships on the platform and will provide “enhanced features to allow fans to enjoy Weverse in a more convenient environment and integrate certain fan clubs.” Function.
HYBE’s proposed mandatory terms for Weverse’s new subscription tiers have prompted some criticism of the platform, including from politicians such as represent. Li Zhengwen Representative of the Democratic Party of Korea.
“Weverse, run by Hybe, has been criticized as an irreplaceable monopoly platform in the Korean pop music industry, controlling everything from live broadcast content and merchandise sales to fan community management,” said Assemblyman Lee. herald.
While it’s a bit of an exaggeration to say Weverse is a “monopoly” in a global context, it’s probably easier to make this argument in a Korean context, as it is the country’s largest superfan platform, with five times the number of monthly active users as the closest competitors, SM Entertainmentof bubbleincluding 2 million Number of monthly active users.
of 152 Artist team hosted on Weverse, 137 Not affiliated with the HYBE label, herald Report.
“Record companies have become so dependent on Weverse that without it, they can no longer do fan marketing,” said Congressman Lee. “The Fair Trading Commission needs to thoroughly investigate these new forms of monopolistic behavior and determine whether associated companies using the platform are being treated unfairly.”
“Record labels have become so dependent on Weverse that they can no longer do fan marketing without it.”
Representative Lee Jeong-moon of the Democratic Party of Korea
this herald The report states that while large Korean labels like SM Entertainment will be able to handle Weverse’s revenue share, this may be a bigger issue for smaller labels given its large fan base.
A small record label reportedly told Rep. Lee that Weverse’s membership program could harm artists’ reputations “by exploiting fans to make money.”
Some fans are also unimpressed with paid membership offers, saying they offer little additional value. The new paid membership tier will provide ad-free, higher-quality video streaming and offline access.
this herald The fact that Weverse is forcing record labels to become members could indicate that HYBE is concerned that many labels won’t sign up voluntarily.
HYBE has also been the target of other consumer complaints. The company received the most consumer claims of any K-pop company between January 2020 and August this year, Korea JoongAng Ilbo reported last month.
At Rep. Lee’s request, the Korea Consumer Agency (KCA) told parliament that the five largest K-pop companies – HYBE, Kakao EntertainmentSM Entertainment, JYP Entertainment and YG Entertainment – Received 240 File a request for consumer harm relief during this period, and 66% Some of them are against HYBE.
The requests related to complaints of defective K-pop merchandise, delayed delivery and violations of refund policies.
The KCA said Weverse was one of four e-commerce platforms linked to K-pop companies fined for violating consumer rights by changing refund windows.
The controversy over Weverse comes at a time when HYBE’s stock price, like other K-pop companies, has been declining. it has dropped 20.5% As of Thursday (October 17), year-to-date, trading prices were 192,100 won ($140.20) per share.
The drop in market value prompted holders of a series of HYBE’s convertible bonds to demand early repayment, forcing HYBE to quickly refinance $293 million in debt. CEO Li Zaixiang Hybe reportedly told employees that the company has ample cash and that HYBE’s financial position is “very healthy.”
The company reported inconsistent revenue growth this year, largely due to base stationis its largest K-pop group and its members are serving compulsory military service.global music business
