The emoticon market that expresses various emotions is growing as the use of mobile messenger becomes commonplace. The number of emoticons sent out each month exceeded 2 billion (domestic, based on KakaoTalk), receiving the subtle feeling of the messages they wanted to convey. There is also a growing interest in a platform for creating emoticons directly.

According to the industry on July 30, Naver Subsidiary, Line Co., Ltd., which provides `KakaoTalk` service and `Line` service, has lowered the threshold of emoticon production based on building a platform for anyone to easily create emoticons.


Naver presented so called `Creator`s Market Studio` application, which can create stickers (emoticons) and messenger themes easy to register in line creator`s market in Japan market last month. Line Creator`s Market is a line sticker open platform that opened in 2014. Anyone can design a sticker according to the rules suggested by Line and register it and sell it to other users.

According to the Line, the number of creators registered in line creators`s market as of May, this year the third anniversary of the launch, exceeded about 720,000 people in 230 countries and 400,000 sets of stamps (including themes) on sale. Especially, the average cumulative sales of the top 10 players exceeded JPY 500 million (about KRW 5 billion). It is estimated that the average profit per creator has been KRW 1.8 billion so far as 30% of the fee and half of the distribution and server costs were distributed to the profits. Particularly in Thailand and Japan, the company said it was active in the creators` market. The company also added that commercialization of book stamps and book characters and collaboration with companies is also increasing.

With the launch of the Creator`s Market Studio app, creators will be able to create their own stamps in a picture-taking format, without the need for digital devices such as illustration programs, computers, or tablets. Application for stamp review & sale is also possible within the app.

In April, Kakao opened `Kakao Emoticon Studio` where anyone can suggest emoticons. Three months later, the number of emoticons increased by two to four times, the company stated. The number of new writers suggesting emoticons also increased more than three times, the company added.

According to the company, the products made through the Emoticon Studio are now at the top of the current emoticon sales. The killer whale writer`s emoticons` rough replies` or fangpie writers` hurried dogs? Busy dogs? are a representative example. In particular, a conversation culture that responds shortly between the ages of 10 and 20 is spreading, and the emoticon is getting favorable, the company mentioned. An expert in the portal industry said, "The domestic emoticon market is estimated at a minimum of KRW 100 billion. The number of creators who make emoticons as a side or hobby is also increasing as everyone can produce emoticons.


By Jin Hyun Jin 2jinhj@


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