November 23, 2024

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South Korean cable TV operator D’Live is hoping to sell Cube Entertainment, the agency behind K-pop signers BTOB and (G)I-dle, according to industry sources Nov. 11.

The company has picked EY Han Young to organize its sale.

According to sources, Korean cosmetics company VT GMP, a Chinese entertainment company and Kakao M, a subsidiary of Korea’s top mobile messenger operator Kakao, have shown interest in acquiring Cube Entertainment.

Currently, iHQ owns a 30.61 percent stake in the firm while the local cable TV operator is the major shareholder of iHQ with more than 45.48 percent stake.

Some industry insiders say that D’Live is seeking to sell the company as it has around 389.9 billion won ($335.63 million) debt, while Cube Entertainment has been improving its earnings over the past two years.

Cube Entertainment’s sales increased from 24.4 billion won in 2017 to 34.5 billion won last year, while posting around 1.9 billion won operating profit.

Meanwhile, D’Live is currently trying to find a new owner and has been in talks with Korean telecom giant KT. However, the talks are not proceeding smoothly due to a regulatory hurdle that restricts any TV operator from having more than 33 percent market share. KT currently has a market share of 31 percent while D’Live has around 6 percent.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heralcrop.com)