Universal Music Group (UMG) and K-pop giant YG Entertainment have invested an undisclosed amount on a rising global digital live streaming platform established by BTS supporter Big Hit Entertainment and cloud video technology company Kiswe , the companies announced on Tuesday.
Leading K-pop company and YG rival Big Hit first partnered with New Jersey-based Kiswe in a MOU last May. In September, they established a joint venture called KBYK Live and together launched a live streaming content platform called VenewLive within the month.
Now, YG and UMG have teamed up with an undisclosed capital investment, looking to work with the duo to further expand the platform’s reach, improve the applications of their unique multi-view technology and showcase their own artists. The move builds on the success of Big Hit’s virtual shows through Kiswe’s technology in 2020 and will help agencies find new ways to attract paying viewers as the COVID-19 pandemic progresses, avoiding live shows.
“The past year has shown that the need for reliable and innovative live streaming has never been greater,” said Boyd Muir, executive vice president, chief financial officer and president of operations at UMG. “We are delighted to join Big Hit, YG and Kiswe as partners in KBYK as we seek to help further develop the opportunities and experiences of live streaming for UMG artists and their fans today and in the future.”
YG Entertainment’s chief operating officer, Sung Jun Choi, said he was “excited about this investment … [which] guaranteed a high quality platform with cutting edge technologies ”for the company’s artists. The move will help YG in its quest to “provide more interactive experiences and new services for global fans,” he added.
The KBYK Live platform is distinguished by the use of Kiswe technology, which allows fans to choose from multiple views at an ongoing live event, previously employed by the company more widely in the field of live sports. For musical performances, the technology allows fans to personalize their view of stage productions complete with a selection of different possible camera positions and angles available to switch between them in real time. It also offers premium features that can increase virtual ticket prices, such as 4K resolution, live chat functions and programs that simulate the synchronized movement of fan light sticks, central to the K-pop stadium show experience.
“VenewLive offers some of the most creative and memorable opportunities for today’s artists to globalize their art and performances, tailored to improve the community and the fan experience,” explained Muir.
These possibilities were shown by record-breaking shows last year, employing Kiswe’s technology put on by Big Hit’s main supergroup, Big Hit’s breadwinner, the sensation of seven BTS members. June’s “BANG BANG CON: The Live” set a Guinness World Record for “most viewers for a live music show”, bringing together some 756,000 paying viewers from 107 countries. In October, the band broke its own record with its two-day online show “Map of the Soul ON: E” (pictured above), which drew 993,000 viewers from 191 countries and territories.
“VenewLive has already broadcast several large-scale presentations live in the past year and has provided immersive and exclusive concert experiences for fans that can be delivered through our cutting edge technologies, including six-angle multi-views, 4K resolution and multiple interactive features, “explained KBYK CEO of Live John Lee.” Our technology will be the foundation to allow fans to feel closer to artists and help artists express their energy on a digital stage. “
UMG and YG’s willingness to engage with the platform marks a vote of confidence for Big Hit’s advanced technological approach to entertainment.
“Big Hit’s attempts to maximize the fan experience are not limited to entertainment, but also [extend to the implementation] technologies, ”said the company’s global CEO, Lenzo Yoon, explaining that VenewLive is a part of that effort. “Our dream and goal is to provide the most advanced technology available today so that fans can experience the artist’s content in the best possible way under any circumstances.”
He added: “We will continue to study how new technologies … can have a positive impact on strengthening the fan experience and actively introduce them.”
At the end of last month, Big Hit announced that it would invest around $ 63 million in YG’s subsidiary, YG PLUS, and improve its online fan community platform WeVerse, connecting with Google’s South Korea equivalent. , the Naver search engine. The latter is investing $ 320 million in the Big Hit subsidiary beNX, which developed the proprietary WeVerse app.
The cloud-based video company Kiswe has offices in New York, London, Hasselt, Seoul and Singapore. It was founded by its current chairman, Jeong Kim – director of Samsung, co-owner of Monumental Sports and Entertainment and former chairman of Bell Labs – and its chief architect Wim Sweldens, former chairman of the French telecommunications company Alcatel- Lucent Wireless and founder of Alcatel-Lucent Ventures. Kiswe’s current CEO and President, Mike Schabel, also comes from Alcatel-Lucent, where he was previously general manager of the Small Cells business.
“We’ve been developing video streaming technology and fan engagement since 2013 and look forward to using [it] for [help artists] extend beyond the boundaries of a stadium [and] perform for your global fans and make them feel like they’re part of the show, ”said Schabel.