The Korean IT giant’s LINE Webtoon service launched in the US in 2014, and in six years the platform reached 70 million MAUs as of May 2020. Naver is also enjoying huge success in the US. “Now Japanese publishers can’t tap into the digital market without going through Korean platforms,” the source explained. "Japan is considered to be the birthplace of comics, and it's unprecedented to see Korean platforms competing against each other to secure the top place,” said an industry source. Naver is Korea's largest internet portal and Kakao is Korea's biggest mobile messaging app operator. The top players are Naver Corp’s LINE Manga with 38% share in the Japanese market, Kakao Corp’s Piccoma with 28%, and NHN’s Comico with 4%. In the US, Naver’s LINE Webtoon has reached 70 million monthly active users (MAU). There were tremendous efforts made,” said Kim Jae-yong, head of Kakao Japan.Īccording to mobile data provider AppAnnie, Korean webtoons, or K-webtoons, hold over 70% market share in Japan’s digital comics market, outperforming traditional giants. “Webtoons, indeed, sync well with digital platforms but their success was more than just getting lucky with the genre. Market watchers claim it is the unique webtoon genre driving Korean digital platforms to global success - but insiders say otherwise.
South Korean webtoons (mobile and digital comics) are taking over the digital comics markets in Japan and the US.
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