Kakao Corporation () is a South Korean internet conglomerate headquartered in

Jeju City Jeju City (; ) is the capital of the Jeju Province in South Korea and the largest city on Jeju Island. The city is served by Jeju International Airport (IATA code CJU). Located on an island off the Korean Peninsula, Jeju has mild, warm weather ...

. It was formed through the merger of

Daum Communications Kakao Corporation () is a South Korean internet Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in Jeju City. It was formed through the merger of Daum (web portal), Daum Communications and the original Kakao Inc. in 2010. The company was rena ...

and the original Kakao Inc. in 2010. The company was renamed Daum Kakao in 2014. In 2015, it was rebranded once more, reverting simply to Kakao. The KakaoTalk messaging app dominates in South Korea, and after launching in March 2010, the service gained around 90% of domestic market share in 2015. In January 2016, Kakao acquired a 76.4% stake in LOEN Entertainment, a large South Korean entertainment company, for $1.5 billion; it was later rebranded to Kakao M. The company has gained further prominence through

KakaoTalk KakaoTalk (), commonly referred to as KaTalk () in South Korea, is an instant messenger and online services platform operated by Kakao Corporation. It was launched in 2010 and the app is available on mobile and desktop platforms. KakaoTalk is ...

, a free mobile

instant messaging Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of synchronous computer-mediated communication involving the immediate ( real-time) transmission of messages between two or more parties over the Internet or another computer network. Originally involv ...

application Application may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Application software, computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks ** Application layer, an abstraction layer that specifies protocols and interface methods used in a ...

for

smartphone A smartphone is a mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multi ...

s, with text and call features.

History

2006–2014: Founding of Kakao Corp.

Kakao Corp is the company behind KakaoTalk, which serves as its main platform and flagship application. It was founded in 2006 by

Kim Bum-soo Kim Bum-soo or Kim Beom-soo () is a Korean name consisting of the family name Kim and the given name Bum-soo, and may refer to: * Kim Bum-soo (singer) (born 1979), South Korean singer * Kim Beom-soo (businessman) Kim Beom-soo (; born March 8 ...

, the former CEO of

NHN Corporation NHN Corp. is a South Korean IT company that started its business as a game company called Hangame in 1999. Currently, its main businesses can be categorized as cloud, fin-tech (cross-border e-commerce, payment), entertainment (game, webtoons, ...

(the organization that emerged from the Hangame and Naver.com merger) as Kakao Inc. Kakao Corp. (then known as Kakao Inc.) is based in

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, South Korea. Manson Yeo and Sean Joh serve as the current co-CEOs. In August 2013, three of the globally ranked top 10 Android games (according to analytics provider App Annie) were tied into the KakaoTalk platform— Everybody’s Marble, '' Cookie Run'', and

Anipang ''Anipang'' is a South Korean mobile puzzle game available through Cyworld Appstore and Naver Social Apps. ''Anipang'' is a social network game in which users compete with each other. It was developed by SundayToz. Service began on 11 October 20 ...

. With 93 percent of South Korea's users on KakaoTalk, the free downloads of the games ''Ani Pang'' and ''Dragon Flight'', which can only be played with a Kakao Talk account, were deemed "national" games. To maintain simplicity across all the provided services, Kakao applications can be purchased and logged in with links to KakaoTalk. Kakao Corp generated revenue of approximately $200M (USD) in 2013 through gaming, digital content,

mobile commerce The term mobile commerce was originally coined in 1997 by Kevin Duffey at the launch of the Global Mobile Commerce Forum, to mean "the delivery of electronic commerce capabilities directly into the consumer’s hand, anywhere, via wireless techno ...

, and its marketing channels for brands and celebrities. Kakao Corp. was named a Top Developer on Google's

Android Market Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store, Play Store, or sometimes the Android Store (and was formerly Android Market), is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certifi ...

, and KakaoTalk was chosen as the number one Free

SMS Short Message Service, commonly abbreviated as SMS, is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet and mobile device systems. It uses standardized communication protocols that let mobile phones exchange short text messages, t ...

App by Cnet. According to a December 2013 App Annie report, Kakao is the world's third top publisher by monthly revenue at

Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store, Play Store, or sometimes the Android Store (and was formerly Android Market), is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certifie ...

. Kakao Corp. is the number one publisher for

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

and Google Play in South Korea, and KakaoTalk is the number one app for iOS and Google Play revenue in South Korea. KakaoTalk was nominated for the Most Innovative Mobile App Award at the Global Mobile Awards 2014. Kakao Corp. agreed to buy Daum Communications Corp, to cut costs and save time to jump-start growth and gain a listing in Seoul, South Korea. Kakao Corp's full suite of apps includes: KakaoTalk, KakaoStory, KakaoTaxi, KakaoAccount, KakaoMap, KakaoDriver, KakaoBus, KakaoMusic, KakaoGroup, KakaoHome, KakaoPlace, KakaoAlbum, KakaoPage, KakaoStyle, and KakaoAgit.

2014–2015: Merger of Daum and Kakao

On 26 May 2014, Kakao Corp. announced that it had decided to merge with

, one of Korea's top Internet portals, through a

stock swap In corporate finance, a stock swap is the exchange of one equity-based asset for another, where, during the merger or acquisition, the swap provides an opportunity to pay with stock rather than with cash; see . Overview The acquiring company ...

. market capitalization, enabling it to lodge a credible threat to Naver, which is South Korea's biggest web portal. In 2015, the company changed its name to Kakao, restoring its pre-merger name. Due to gambling and censorship issues within the Kakao ecosystem, the organization's board of directors ejected Kim-beom-soo as CEO and decided to replace him with Rim Ji-hoon. Kim Beom-soo became the largest shareholder in the new pro forma company with a 22.2 percent stake.

2016–present: New business model

Kakao was approved by South Korean regulators to become the nation's first internet-only bank in 2017. The internet bank engages in the same business as commercial banks, including processing deposits, loans and wiring money. Consumers will no longer need to visit a bank to open a new bank account or to get a loan. Kakao's business plan was considered innovative, and the company's business model was expected to secure sizable customer sign-ups relatively easily, based on the users of KakaoTalk, which is the country's most popular messaging application. Although

K Bank Kbank () is an online bank based in South Korea. Its largest owner is the telecommunications company, KT Corporation. History Kbank launched in 2017, when both KT and Kakao were given licenses to launch Internet-only banks in Korea. These two ...

eventually became South Korea's first Internet-only bank having been launched several months prior, Kakao Bank immediately attracted more customers; 820,000 within four days of its launch on 27 July 2017. The dedicated Kakao Bank app itself was downloaded 1.5 million times within the same period. The bank had 3.5 million customers after a month. These figures trounced the 400,000 users that K-Bank amassed within 100 days of its existence. By 26 September 2017, Kakao Bank lent ₩1.4 trillion ($1.2 billion), constituting 40 percent of the total loans in all of South Korea for that particular month. The bank's unprecedented expansion is seen as an exception to the closure of banks, particularly foreign-owned institutions. The fledgling performance of these banks is being blamed on the high cost of maintaining brick-and-mortar operations and the popularity of internet finance among Korean consumers. On 10 March 2015, Daum Kakao launched its KakaoTaxi service that allows users to call a taxi using the KakaoTaxi application. About 600,000 taxi consumers used the ride-hailing platform every day within eight months of its launch. In 2017, KakaoTaxi was renamed to

Kakao T Kakao T (formerly KakaoTaxi) is a Korean transportation service app launched by Kakao Mobility Corp., a subsidiary of Kakao, in 2017. The service provides taxi-hailing, designated driver booking, nearby parking space searching, and real-time traf ...

. The service includes the premium extension Kakao Taxi Black, which allows users to book rides in Seoul via the messenger app, exclusively carried in luxury cars such as Mercedes Benz, Lexus, and BMW. Fares for the premium service start at ₩8,000. Kakao announced plans to expand the offering to other Korean cities within the following year. Kakao announced in April 2019 that they would be launching an e-bike sharing service with an initial fleet of 400 bikes across two major cities. In 2020, Kakao was expected to see improved performance due to rising demand for social IT infrastructure and internet-based services that could be used easily from home. This included acquiring a major stake as the largest shareholder in

KakaoBank KakaoBank Corp. (stylized as Kakaobank; ) is a South Korean financial institution specializing in mobile banking services and financial technology. It was founded in 2016 through a collaboration between Korea Investment Holdings and Kakao Cor ...

and launching advertising on KakaoTalk. As a result, the company recorded its highest-ever first-quarter revenue and operating profit since its founding. On May 23, 2020, its stock reached a 52-week high, and Kakao surpassed Hyundai Motor to become the 10th largest company by market capitalization on the KOSPI.

Products and services

KakaoTalk

commonly referred to as KaTalk in South Korea, is an instant messenger and online services platform operated by Kakao Corporation.

Kakao Entertainment

Kakao Entertainment Corp is a South Korean entertainment, mass media, and publishing company founded in 2021.

KakaoStyle

KakaoStyle is a mobile application that curates and aggregates fashion content, links, stores, and information from various websites. KakaoTalk users are able to discover various fashion trends using the app, and see their friend's interests. The app gives suggestions, and links to purchase clothing and various items.

KakaoPay

Kakao Pay is a mobile payment and digital wallet service by Kakao based in South Korea that allows users to make mobile payments and online transactions. The service supports contactless payments using near-field communications and QR codes.

KakaoBank

KakaoBank Corp. is a South Korean financial institution specializing in mobile banking services and financial technology. It was founded in 2016 through a collaboration between Korea Investment Holdings and Kakao Corp.

Kakao T

Kakao T is a Korean transportation service app launched in 2017 by Kakao Mobility Corp., a subsidiary of Kakao. The service provides taxi-hailing, designated driver booking, nearby parking space searching, and real-time traffic information service.

Kakao Games

Kakao Games Corp. is a South Korean video game publisher and a subsidiary of Kakao. It specializes in developing and publishing games on PC, mobile, and VR platforms.

Others

* KakaoBus: real-time location and traffic information on buses. * KakaoMetro: metro line app, allows users to view the metro map, plan trips, and check prices. * KakaoStory: image, video, and music sharing service *

KakaoPage KakaoPage () is a monetized content platform optimized for mobile devices, launched by Kakao Corp. in 2013 and currently owned by its subsidiary Kakao Entertainment. The service launched on April 9, 2013, as a digital content marketplace, allowin ...

: web-based comic and novel service *

Brunch Brunch is a meal, often accompanied by "signature morning cocktails" such as mimosas, bloody marys, espresso martinis, and bellinis, taken sometime in the late morning or early afternoon – the universally accepted time is 11am-2pm, though mod ...

: mobile contents publishing service * KakaoMusic: music app with sharing features *

Melon A melon is any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae with sweet, edible, and fleshy fruit. It can also specifically refer to ''Cucumis melo'', commonly known as the "true melon" or simply "melon". The term "melon" can apply to both the p ...

: music streaming service acquired through Kakao M *

PotPlayer PotPlayer is a multimedia software player developed for the Microsoft Windows operating system by South Korean Internet company Kakao (formerly Daum Communications). It competes with other popular Windows media players such as VLC media player, ...

: media player for Windows * KakaoHairshop: service, finding a nearby beauty salon * Klaytn: consumer blockchain platform for mobile payments (via its subsidiary Ground X) * KakaoFriends: diverse products including finance, distribution, foods, and so on * KakaoHello: Call app service based on Kakao account *

KakaoTV KakaoTV is a South Korean OTT streaming television, personal internet broadcasting and video player service owned by Kakao Entertainment that launched on June 16, 2015. History On June 16, 2015, KakaoTV was officially released. Initially, it ...

: integrates Kakao TV Live broadcasting with KakaoTalk's open chatting * KakaoHome: service, managing Smartphone home display * KakaoPlace: service, sharing famous places * KakaoAlbum: sharing pictures with Kakao friends

Subsidiary

Investment

* Kakao INV: Investment in late stage startups. * Kakao Ventures: Venture Capital for early stage startups.

Notes

References

32. Naver vs. Kakao: Way of working with startups. https://pickool.net/naver-vs-kakao-way-of-working-with-startups/

External links

* {{DJSI World South Korean companies established in 2014 Companies based in Jeju City Companies listed on KOSDAQ Companies in the KOSPI 200 South Korean brands Internet properties established in 2014