SEOUL, August 7 (AJU PRESS) — HYBE, the entertainment powerhouse behind global K-pop sensation BTS, on Wednesday reported a sharp decrease in profits despite achieving record revenue in the second quarter, due to higher costs associated with new ventures and artists.
The company posted a record 640.5 billion won ($465.26 million) in sales during the April-June period, a 3.1 percent increase year-on-year. The figure surpasses the previous high of 621 billion won set in the second quarter of 2023.
However, operating profit fell 37.4 percent to 50.9 billion won and net profit dropped 85.9 percent to 16.5 billion won.
HYBE attributed the profit decline to initial costs related to launching new businesses, including the publishing game "Become a Star 2: Knights of Veda," and expanding its roster of rookie artists.
“Profitability is expected to improve from the third quarter as our artists are scheduled to engage in a large number of domestic and international activities,” the company said.
HYBE's sales for the first half of the year reached 1.001 trillion won, marking the second consecutive year of crossing the trillion-won threshold in the initial six months.
Album and music sales increased 1.5% year-on-year to 249.5 billion won. HYBE artists sold more than 15 million albums, accounting for 34% of domestic album sales during the period.
Looking ahead, HYBE's artist roster is set for a busy second half. BTS member Jin is scheduled to release a solo album, while other groups like Seventeen, Enhyphen, Le Sserafim and NewJeans have planned comebacks, world tours and special performances.
“The second half of 2024 marks the beginning of a new era under new leadership, laying the foundation for mid- to long-term growth by building music, platform and technology-based future growth businesses,” CEO Lee Jae-sang said.