Earlier today, recently merged Korean firms Daum and Kakao shared their third quarter earnings reports. While still operating separately for the time being, Daum-Kakao announced a total combined revenue of 221.8 billion won (US$200 million), with profits of 30.759 billion won (US$28 million). While overall revenue was down six percent year-on-year, it’s clear that Kakao and games will be driving the newly merged company going forward.
Kakao led the way in terms of profits, raking in more than 30 billion Korean won for the quarter. Of its total revenue of over 88 billion won (US$88 million), games revenue made up the lion’s share at nearly 60 billion won (US$55 million).
This was made possible behind the strength of its 20 million active users making use of KakaoGames alone. While its hold at the top of Korea’s app charts is still strong, it is down significantly from last year, when it controlled 87.9 percent of the top 20 apps in October, compared to 74.4 percent this year.
According to Metaps, the company still boasts 15 of the top 20 apps on Google Play in a country where Android accounts for more than nine out of every 10 smart devices. But its inability to convince major gaming apps like Clash of Clans to release a “for Kakao” version of their games is no doubt worrying. As is the backlash over privacy concerns.
While Daum accounted for nearly 133.5 billion won (US$122 million) in revenue, its operating costs were listed at 132.9 billion (US$121.6 million). This resulted in a profit margin of only 0.5 percent. Clearly the merger was more than a breath of fresh air for the ailing communications giant; it may turn out to be a lifeline.
See: Line reports 25 million registered users in the USA, global revenue jumps 16% from last quarter
This post Daum and out: Kakao doing the heavy lifting for the recently merged companies. appeared first on Tech in Asia.
Daum and out: Kakao doing the heavy lifting for the recently merged companies.
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