Weverse (Korean: 위버스;RR: wibeoseu) is a South Koreanmobile app andweb platform created by South Korean entertainment companyHybe Corporation. The app specializes in hosting multimedia content, the sale of artist-related merchandise, content subscription, and artist-to-fan communications for artists.
Weverse hosts a variety of free and paid content including educational and entertainment videos,Instagram Story-style updates, and artist-to-fan interactions and communities for users to connect with each other. The app is also used to publish official statements by Hybe (formerlyBig Hit Entertainment) on behalf of artists signed with its labels.[1]
The software was developed by Hybe's technologysubsidiary Weverse Company (formerly beNX). As of 2023, Weverse has over 10 million monthly users.[2]
The app was developed by Weverse Company (formerly beNX),[3][4][5] a subsidiary technology company ofHybe Corporation (formerly Big Hit Entertainment) specializing in digital platforms and customer service.[6][7] According to Weverse Company then president, Seo Wooseok, the app was developed to offer a platform forK-pop artists to interact with fans "on a deeper level" than that offered by YouTube or Twitter, which emphasize content delivery over communication.[3] Hybe then co-CEO Lenzo Yoon characterized the app as a "one-stop service within the music industry."[6][8]
According to Jenny Zha, CEO of the digital media consultancy firm Infinitize, K-pop "market leaders likeBTS", who have amassed significant fan followings, no longer need to focus on being discovered but rather on monetization and ownership of their content. Zha, in an interview withBillboard, explained that "labels want to [...] create an asset they can own and mobilize for other artists and ventures because they know that fans will follow to where the content is. It creates more security for the label for the long term."[3]
Hybe launched the e-commerce platform Weply in June 2019. It later became the app Weverse Shop.[8]
News of the app's development was first announced in October 2019 through an advertisement shown at the beginning of BTS's three-dayLove Yourself: Speak Yourself stadium tour inSeoul, South Korea. The advertisement played simultaneously to 130,000 in-person concertgoers, as well as viewers watching vialive-stream and in movie theaters.[6][3]
On January 27, 2021,Naver Corporation announced the transfer of theirV-Live service to Weverse Company and its integration with the Weverse platform.[9] On January 1, 2023, V-Live service was officially terminated.[10]
Weverse is currently available as a website and as an e-commerce, entertainment, and communication-focused app of the same name.[3][11][12] The app is available for free forAndroid on theGoogle Play Store,iOS on theApple App Store andFire TV, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV,Android TV andApple TV on its respective app stores.[13] The web and app platforms host a variety of free and subscription content including videos,Instagram Story-style updates, and artist-to-fan interactions and communities for users to connect with each other.[7][14] Communities of acts or artists who are no longer active or have disbanded (e.g.GFriend,[15]NU'EST[16]), whether due to contract expiration or other factors, remain open on Weverse and existing content can still be viewed, but features such as creating new posts and editing profiles are disabled.[17]
Subscriptions for individual series hosted on Weverse, as well as fan memberships and merchandise for the various artists that utilize the platform were originally available for purchase via the Weverse Shop app and website.[3][6] Following the integration of all shop features and services with the Weverse app—a dedicated Shop icon was added to the home screen—on May 7, 2024, the Weverse Shop app was discontinued.[12][18]
Tomorrow X Together was the first artist to join the earliest version of Weverse, on June 11, 2019.[3] LabelmateBTS followed afterwards on July 1,[19] as well asGFriend on August 1.[20] Since then various artists signed to companies under Hybe's multi-label system (e.g.Seventeen,[11][7]BoyNextDoor,Le Sserafim),[21] including acts formed as part of joint venture projects (e.g.Enhypen),[22] have also joined.
Artists fromSM Entertainment joined the platform on September 12, 2023, transferring from the label's own platformKwangya Club, as a part of an agreement between SM, Hybe, and Kakao Entertainment in early 2023 after the dispute on the right on management over SM Entertainment.[31][32]
^Hwang, Hye-jin (July 29, 2019).빅히트 측 "쏘스뮤직 인수 계약→자회사 편입, 독립성 유지"(공식) [Big Hit's "Source Music Acquisition Agreement → Incorporation into a subsidiary, maintaining independence" (Official)].Newsen (in Korean).Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. RetrievedMarch 26, 2020.
^Hwang, Ji-young (September 8, 2020).'빅히트 레이블' 뉴이스트, 위버스 커뮤니티 오픈 ['Big Hit Label' NU'EST Opens Weverse Community].Ilgan Sports (in Korean).Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 9, 2021.
^Kim Soo-jin (July 14, 2021)."블랙핑크, 오는 8월 2일 위버스 합류 [공식]" [Blackpink to join Weverse on August 2nd [Official]].Naver (in Korean). MT Star News.Archived from the original on July 14, 2021. RetrievedJuly 14, 2021.
^Hwang, Ji-young (February 1, 2021).뉴 호프 클럽, 1일 위버스 커뮤니티 오픈...해외 아티스트로는 2번째 [New Hope Club opens Weverse Community on the 1st... 2nd overseas artist].Ilsan Sports (in Korean).Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 9, 2021.
^Hwang, Ji-young (February 15, 2021).미국 가수 알렉산더 23, 위버스로 팬과 소통 [American singer Alexander 23 communicates with fans through Weverse].Ilsan Sports.Archived from the original on March 18, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 17, 2021.
^Choi, Hee-jae (April 19, 2021).美 팝스타 제레미 주커, 위버스 합류...글로벌 영향력 확대 [공식입장] [US pop star Jeremy Zucker joins Weverse...Expanding Global Influence [Official]].X Sports News (in Korean).Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. RetrievedApril 19, 2021 – via Naver.
^Oh Seo-rin (August 29, 2023)."엑소→에스파, SM 소속 아티스트들 9월부터 위버스 합류" [EXO → Aespa, artists from SM join Weverse from September].Top Star News (in Korean). RetrievedAugust 29, 2023.
^XG、コミュニティープラットフォーム『Weverse』に参加 デビューシングルの数量限定CD＆アナログレコードも予約販売開始 [XG joins community platform "Weverse", limited quantity of their debut single CD & analog vinyl will also be available for pre-order].Real Sound (in Japanese). March 14, 2022.Archived from the original on March 14, 2022. RetrievedJuly 15, 2023.
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