April 20, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Mobile messenger operator Kakao Corp. said on Feb. 9 that its annual sales exceeded the 1-trillion mark for the first time in 2016 thanks mainly to the strong performance of the content businesses including those for mobile games and music.

The operating profit of the firm last year came in at 116.1 billion won (US$101.18 million), up 31.1 percent from a year earlier, while revenue stood at 1.46 trillion won, up 57.1 percent on-year.

 

Kakao CEO Rim Ji-hoon

In the fourth quarter alone, revenue from the firm’s mobile content platform increased 228.7 percent year-over-year to 221.5 billion won.

The game content business grew 93.2 billion won in the fourth quarter, up 63.4 percent on-year, as mobile games as well as PC games released last year, including “Friends Popcorn,” “Kong Fu Panda 3” and “Black Desert,” garnered immense popularity, according to the firm.

Kakao saw revenue from the music content business increase 12 percent to 106.9 billion.

The Pangyo-based mobile messenger firm said it would try to make headway into the artificial intelligence sector, a segment that has recently received the limelight as many global tech giants, such as Google and Apple, have jumped into the field.

“Kakao has developed a range of AI technologies, such as those for its voice and image recognition solutions and natural language processing systems,” said Rim Ji-hoon in a conference call on the day.

The company will announce detailed plans for its AI project, dubbed Kakao Brain, in the second quarter this year.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)