South Korean blockchain-based K-pop startup, Modhaus, has successfully raised $8 million in a series A funding round led by Sfermion, a U.S. venture capital firm.
Other notable participants include SM Culture Partners, Laguna Investment, KDDI Open Innovation Fund III, and Foresight Ventures.
Established in December 2021, Modhaus has introduced a unique non-fungible token (NFT) voting system, forming the popular K-pop girl group, tripleS, boasting over 1.74 million YouTube subscribers.
Through Modhaus' COSMO app, fans engage with their favorite group by purchasing NFT photocards, which also serve as voting tokens.
These tokens enable fans to actively participate in crucial decisions regarding group activities, such as member engagements, title songs, album jacket photo shoots, and even selecting cities for events.
Jaden Jeong, Modhaus' CEO and co-founder, conveyed the company's goal to boost artist value by empowering fans through increased participation.
He said:
"Korean entertainment is really rich and authentic, and by revolutionising how fans engage with it, we can really create something interesting and unique."
The statement emphasises the unique approach Modhaus takes, leveraging NFT-format photocards to deepen fan engagement in K-pop decision-making processes.
Simon Kim, CEO and Managing Partner at Hashed, the company investing in Modhaus, foresees Web3 as the upcoming transformative force in music, drawing parallels to the impact of media and streaming on the industry:
"Just as media and streaming have transformed the music industry, it is anticipated that Web3 will be the next game changer for the music industry,"
GD Kim, COO of UNOPND, a venture division of Hashed, highlighted Modhaus' impact on blockchain adoption, with around 130,000 dedicated K-pop fans purchasing 1.2 million digital photo cards on COSMO since its launch.
He mentioned:
"Modhaus has demonstrated a prime example of driving mass adoption of blockchain technology in the entertainment industry,"
The K-pop industry as a whole is embracing Web3 and NFTs, with major agencies like HYBE, managing renowned acts such as BTS, venturing into the NFT and metaverse space.
HYBE launched its NFT platform, Momentica, in collaboration with Korean blockchain firm Dunamu.
The platform has successfully attracted over 90,200 fans to purchase SEVENTEEN NFTs, featuring videos and photos, illustrating the growing synergy between K-pop and blockchain technology.
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