April 25, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Line, a mobile messenger firm owned by Korean portal operator Naver, has launched Line Live, a live video streaming app, in Germany as part of its push to infiltrate the European market.

The launch is the second overseas after Japan where the firm’s messenger is immensely popular.

Line will work with ProSiebenSat.1, a German private broadcasting firm, to develop content for the app, according to the messenger firm.

“Line Live is targeting the younger generation, in the their teens and early 20s,” said an official from the mobile messenger firm, adding the company will try to achieve the same success it did with the streaming app in Japan.

The live streaming app, launched in Japan in 2015, boasts 24 million monthly active users and is expected to serve as a touchstone for both Line and Naver, aiming to increase their presence in Europe.

The two companies jointly invested 100 million euros (US$120.82 million) for Korelya Capital, a French venture fund. Naver also joined a US$106 million funding round for French high-end audio system developer Devialet in November 2016, and more recently acquired artificial intelligence laboratory Xerox Research Center Europe in June this year.

The recent moves by Line and Naver to stride into Europe is said to be in line with founder Lee Hae-jin’s quest to find emerging startups and new technologies in the region.

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