HYBE has surpassed 2 trillion won in annual sales for the second consecutive year, thanks to strong album sales and remarkable growth in the concert and merchandise sectors. After becoming the first domestic entertainment company to exceed 2 trillion won in annual sales in 2023, the company has once again set a new record for maximum revenue in 2024, showing an upward trend in performance.
Despite the members of BTS fulfilling their military service obligations last year, various HYBE music group artists continued to thrive and maintain growth. However, due to changes in revenue proportions by artist and costs associated with initial infrastructure investments, operating profit decreased compared to the previous year.
HYBE's consolidated revenue for 2024 is approximately 2.2545 trillion won, an increase of about 4% compared to the previous year, marking the highest figure since its establishment. Direct participation revenue decreased by 1.8% to 1.4453 trillion won, while indirect participation revenue increased by 14.5% to 809.3 billion won during the same period. Although the album sales sector, which has a large share, saw a decline of 11.3% compared to the previous year, the concert sector experienced a significant increase of 25.6%, offsetting the revenue decrease. Following the end of the pandemic, it appears that fans' consumption patterns have diversified, focusing on offline activities.
In the album sector, the annual Circle Chart market share of HYBE's domestic artists rose from 38% to 40%, an increase of 2 percentage points compared to the previous year. SEVENTEEN achieved a remarkable record by selling over 10 million albums for two consecutive years, continuing from 2023. TOMORROW X TOGETHER had two albums enter the annual Circle Chart top 10, and all three albums released last year made it onto the Japan Oricon year-end chart. ENHYPEN recorded cumulative sales of 5.45 million albums, proving their global popularity by ranking 8th and 9th on the annual album charts in the U.S. and Japan, respectively. NewJeans achieved the highest sales share among K-pop female artists by selling over 3 million albums. BOYNEXTDOOR, who gained popularity with their recent release 'I LOVE YOU Today,' became a million-seller just a year and a half after their debut.
In the music sector, HYBE music group artists shone brightly. A total of 15 songs by HYBE artists entered the top 20 of the Circle Chart 'Global K-Pop Chart,' demonstrating strong content competitiveness across domestic and international streaming platforms. Solo songs by BTS members Jin, Jimin, V, and Jungkook, as well as RM's feature on Megan Thee Stallion's 'Never Play,' made it onto the Billboard 'Hot 100.' LE SSERAFIM charted on the Billboard 'Hot 100' with 'EASY' and 'CRAZY' in the first and second halves of the year, respectively. The group TOURUS, which debuted last year, topped the Melon annual chart with their debut song 'The First Meeting Didn't Go as Planned,' while ILY:1 made history by entering both the U.S. Billboard 'Hot 100' and the UK 'Official Singles Top 100' with their debut song 'Magnetic.'
Last year, HYBE music group artists held 147 concerts and 25 fan meetings, achieving the highest concert revenue in the company's history. According to Billboard's '2024 K-Pop Concert Revenue Chart,' SEVENTEEN, ENHYPEN, and TOMORROW X TOGETHER dominated the top three spots. Notably, concert revenue in the fourth quarter of last year reached 188.9 billion won, more than double the performance from the same period the previous year.
Looking at indirect participation revenue, the revenue from the MD and licensing sectors, which showed a synergistic effect with the concert sector, increased by 29.1% compared to the previous year, reaching 420 billion won, marking the highest performance ever. As HYBE music group artists conducted large-scale world tours, sales of concert-related merchandise and light sticks significantly increased, and character products inspired by members of groups like BTS, SEVENTEEN, and TOMORROW X TOGETHER received much love.
HYBE America also achieved notable results. Artists under the Big Machine Label Group, a label of HYBE America, topped 10 Billboard charts, with Carly Pearce being nominated for the Grammy Awards for two consecutive years. Another label under HYBE America, QC Music, continued to see active participation from major artists like Quavo, Lil Baby, and Lil Yachty. Lil Baby's 'WHAM,' released in early January this year, topped the Billboard 200 chart, and all four albums he recently released achieved the number one spot on that chart. The management division of HYBE America, SB Projects, recently strengthened its artist management capabilities by hiring Cade Hudson, who has worked with famous American singers like Britney Spears, Usher, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, and Selena Gomez at the world's largest agency, Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
HYBE's consolidated operating profit for 2024 is 184.8 billion won, a decrease of 38% compared to the previous year. The decrease in operating profit was influenced by the hiatus in team activities due to BTS's military service obligations and changes in revenue proportions by artist due to the debut of several rookie groups. Costs associated with investments for the debut of CAT'S EYE in the U.S. and personnel and infrastructure investments to establish a growth foundation for HYBE Latin America also contributed to the decline in profit margins. Additionally, as new growth businesses, including Weverse and gaming, began to operate in earnest, upfront investment costs for securing medium- to long-term growth drivers were incurred.
HYBE's profitability is expected to improve this year. Above all, with BTS making a comeback and the balanced growth of HYBE music group artists leading to economies of scale, the strengthening of artist management capabilities through the hiring of Cade Hudson, and the revenue generation from HYBE Latin America are expected to contribute to improved profitability.
The performance of new growth business sectors is also cited as a factor for improving profitability. Revenue related to the Weverse digital membership service, which started in December last year, is expected to be reflected in the performance starting this January, after the free usage period ends. HYBE IM is strengthening its publishing lineup through new titles like 'Architect: Land of Exile,' which garnered significant interest from gamers at '2024 G-STAR,' and new works from Bonfire Studio. Several self-developed titles, including the mobile puzzle game 'Puzzle SEVENTEEN,' are also planned for sequential release. The AI audio company Superton has officially launched 'Superton Shift' and 'Superton Play.' Superton Shift is a service that converts users' voices into character voices, with approximately 350,000 subscribers currently. Superton Play applies TTS technology to convert text into speech, supporting 150 voices in three languages, and is being delivered in B2B formats such as AI chatbots.
Additionally, new team projects will be launched this year in regions such as the U.S., Japan, and Latin America. HYBE aims to lead market innovation with a 'multi-home, multi-genre' strategy that integrates the K-pop system and know-how with local cultures and characteristics. In the U.S., a new boy group project will be initiated in collaboration with producer Ryan Tedder, who has worked with global musicians like Beyoncé, Adele, and Ed Sheeran. In Japan, YX LABELS (formerly HYBE LABELS Japan) will introduce a new generation of J-pop groups following &TEAM.
[Ji Seung-hoon, Star Today Reporter]
