HYBE, SM, JYP and YG Announce Profits in the Second Quarter of 2021, Who is the Most Profitable?

Kapanlagi.com - Several major and well-known entertainment agencies in Korea recently announced their profits in the second quarter of 2021. In addition to the 'Big 3' consisting of SM Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and YG Entertainment, the highest business competition in the K-Pop industry is also followed by other major players, namely HYBE, which was previously known as Big Hit Entertainment.

As a brief overview, there are three main financial terms applied by K-Pop companies, including the four major agencies mentioned above. These three terms need to be understood first before discussing the numbers.

First, there is revenue, which is obtained from the total company's income through all sales, both albums and merchandise, before deducting various expenses.

Then, there is operating profit, which is the money remaining for the company after being used to pay all expenses. This does not include savings or investment profits.

Next, there is net income, which can be considered the most important figure used as a reference for the profitability of a company. Net income is the final income from all cash flows minus all costs and expenses.

So, based on these calculations, which of the four major K-Pop agencies is the most profitable in the second quarter of 2021? Here is the report as reported by Koreaboo.

1. YG Entertainment

credit via YG Entertainment

YG Entertainment is the only member of the 'Big 3' that failed to make a profit in the second quarter of 2021. YG suffered a loss of 1.50 billion Won or equivalent to 1.29 million US dollars. YG's operating profit was only 10.4 billion Won or approximately 8.92 million US dollars, which was obtained from album sales and merchandise amounting to 83.6 billion Won or equivalent to 71.7 million US dollars.

This is because during the second quarter of 2021, not a single YG artist released a new song or made a comeback. Sales are predicted to increase in the third quarter of 2021 through Lisa BLACKPINK's solo debut.

Although in the first quarter of 2021, several YG artists made comebacks, such as TREASURE, Bobby iKON, and Seungyoon WINNER, as well as Rose BLACKPINK's solo debut, but it did not bring significant profits. YG's finances continue to decline, as it only generated a net profit of 8.65 billion Won or approximately 7.42 million US dollars in the first quarter of 2021.

2. JYP Entertainment

credit via JYP Entertainment

Next is JYP Entertainment, which obtained a net profit of 4.80 billion Won or approximately 4.12 million US dollars in the second quarter of 2021. The company's operating profit reached 9.60 billion Won or equivalent to 8.24 million US dollars from total sales of 40.6 billion Won or approximately 34.8 million US dollars.

This profit was obtained after most of JYP's artists, such as DAY6, ITZY, and TWICE, made a comeback in the second quarter of 2021. However, financially, JYP still experienced a decline since the first quarter of 2021.

Fortunately, this financial decline is not as severe as what YG experienced. Because, even though there were no artists making a comeback in the first quarter of 2021, JYP still obtained a net profit of around 12 billion Won or approximately 10.3 million US dollars in the first quarter of 2021.

3. SM Entertainment

credit via SM Entertainment

The other members of the 'Big 3' are SM Entertainment, which earned a net profit of 16.3 billion Won or approximately 14 million US dollars in the second quarter of 2021. SM recorded an operating profit of 27.5 billion Won or around 23.6 million US dollars, from sales of 186 billion Won or equivalent to 160 million US dollars.

The significant profit was achieved thanks to many SM artists making a comeback in the second quarter, such as SHINee, Taemin, Yesung of Super Junior, EXO, and NCT Dream. In addition, in the second quarter of 2021, several SM artists also made solo debuts, such as Wendy and Joy of Red Velvet, thus contributing to the increase in sales at SM.

Compared to the first quarter, it can be said that SM doubled its revenue in the second quarter of 2021. This is because in the first quarter of 2021, SM earned a net profit of 8.67 billion Won or approximately 7.74 million US dollars, thanks to comebacks by SHINee, Super Junior, and Baekhyun of EXO.

4. HYBE

credit via Big Hit Music

Finally, there is HYBE, which became the most profitable company in the K-Pop industry in the second quarter of 2021. HYBE successfully recorded a net profit of 20.2 billion Won or about 17.3 million US dollars. The company's operating profit is 28 billion Won or about 24 million US dollars, from total sales of 279 billion Won or about 239 million US dollars.

This fantastic profit was obtained thanks to many HYBE artists making a comeback in the second quarter of 2021, such as BTS, TXT, SEVENTEEN, NU'EST, and ENHYPEN. These K-Pop idols not only contributed to the profit from album and merchandise sales, but also from streaming.

Interestingly, HYBE experienced an increase in revenue compared to the first quarter, which only obtained a net profit of about 15.8 billion Won or about 13.6 million US dollars, without any of its artists making a comeback.

That is the list of profits from the four giant businesses in the K-Pop industry during the second quarter of 2021. If ranked by the most profitable, the results are HYBE, SM, JYP, and YG. These profits can change at any time, either in the third or fourth quarter of 2021, because sometimes the success of K-Pop idol comebacks is also unpredictable.

Out of these four major K-Pop agencies, are you among those who contribute to their profits, KLovers?

(kly/tmi)