KRAFTON Achieves Record-high Sales of 1.3729T KRW (788.9M GBP) in the First Half of 2024

KRAFTON Inc. (CEO CH Kim, KRX: 259960) held a conference call for investor relations (IR) briefing today and announced its earnings for the first half and the second quarter of 2024.

Based on consolidated financial statements in accordance with Korean International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS), KRAFTON reported cumulative sales of 1.3729T KRW (788.9M GBP) and operating profit of 642.6B KRW (369.2M GBP) for the first half of 2024. Both sales and operating profit were the highest ever on a half-yearly basis, showing 48.3% and 55.0% year-on-year increases, respectively. The second-quarter sales amounted to 707B KRW (406.2M GBP), setting a new record for quarterly sales following the first quarter, and the operating profit was 332.1B KRW (190.8M GBP). These figures represent year-on-year increases of 82.7% and 152.6%, respectively.

KRAFTON has maintained solid growth in all areas, including sales and traffic, through various live services leveraging PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS (hereinafter referred to as PUBG). Additionally, KRAFTON has been raising the quality of the development for major new titles, such as Dark and Darker Mobile and inZOI, with a total of 11 investments in game studios in the first half of the year alone to discover new IPs.

Major achievements in the first half of 2024

PUBG has received positive responses from users worldwide through various content, such as map updates and collaborations, resulting in increased traffic and sales efficiency compared to the same period last year.

For PC/console versions, traffic continued to rise due to mainly the Erangel Classic map service and the NewJeans collaboration. The monthly active users (MAU) grew by 40% year-on-year, and the number of paying users more than doubled. In the second half of the year, KRAFTON plans to accelerate growth with in-game updates, including the Lamborghini collaboration.

On the mobile platform, ‘PUBG Mobile’ and ‘Battlegrounds Mobile India (hereinafter referred to as BGMI)’ have consistently received positive feedback through localised content and have shown visible growth through the enhancement of monetisation models. ‘PUBG Mobile’ has contributed significantly to traffic and sales through collaboration with a popular Middle Eastern actor and the introduction of progressive outfit skins. BGMI is also attracting new users through UC bonus challenges and collaboration with a popular local cricket team.

Introduction of major new title lineups

KRAFTON is preparing two titles, Dark and Darker Mobile and inZOI, aiming for release this year. Both titles will be showcased at gamescom in Germany at the end of this month to gauge the reactions of the Western audience. Dark and Darker Mobile recently conducted a global test, and based on the results of this test, the game will be further enhanced for a soft launch in Canada in October, with a global launch scheduled for the fourth quarter of this year. inZOI is focused on development with the goal of early access this year, while also aiming to grow into a long-standing IP in the life simulation genre, which has already proven popular in the Western market.

KRAFTON is accelerating equity investments and new IP discovery to diversify platforms and genres. Since 2021, the company invested in 27 companies, including 14 in North America and 8 in Europe, and also expanded the genres of the acquired games to include shooters, RPG and simulation. Additionally, in August, KRAFTON acquired the development team of a Japanese game developer, Tango Gameworks.

Key new businesses in India and AI

Based on the experience and know-how accumulated in India through BGMI, KRAFTON is conducting local publishing business in full-scale. The company is expanding its interactions with local users through marketing activities and esports operations tailored to various local languages and cultures.

KRAFTON also continues to explore new gameplay experiences based on its AI R&D capabilities. In the first half of this year, KRAFTON’s ReLU Games introduced two games utilising AI and received positive responses from famous streamers and users. In the second half of this year, the company plans to release new titles using reinforcement learning and large language models (LLM) to provide users with unique and enjoyable experiences.

KRAFTON’s mid-to-long-term direction

KRAFTON plans to discover original games and IPs and create a service that grows steadily through continuous improvement and content updates. The company plans to expand the PUBG IP Franchise business and identify high-potential IPs through various methods, including in-house development, minority investments and M&As.

Editor’s note: South Korean Won (KRW) to British Pound (GBP) conversions based on 9 August 2024 exchange rate for this press release. 1KRW = 0.00057GBP

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