WEBTOON, the world’s largest digital comics platform, has appointed brand management company Surge Licensing as the exclusive North American licensing agent for the platform. Genuine Entertainment’s Joe LeFavi was instrumental in developing the partnership and will continue to collaborate with WEBTOON and Surge as a strategic advisor in the endeavor.

Surge has been retained to develop an overall brand licensing strategy for WEBTOON as well as licensing and merchandise programs in North America for the platform’s individual original IP. Building bespoke programs for WEBTOON and its flagship IP, Surge and Genuine will expand WEBTOON’s licensing and merchandising business, developing franchises through categories that include apparel, fashion collaborations, toy, tabletop games, promotions, and more.

WEBTOON is the global leader in digital comics, where some of the world’s biggest comic creators and series have built massive global fandoms. The company has redefined comics for Gen Z and the digital era, with 85 million monthly active users globally and 12.5 million US users. With over 1 million titles and 10.5 billion global monthly page views, WEBTOON is home to a new generation of comic creators and fans around the globe.

WEBTOON hosts a diverse range of comics across every style and genre, with each flagship IP boasting millions of subscribers and views exceeding the hundreds of millions, if not billions. Their popularity only rises in Hollywood, with non-stop live-action and animated adaptations like All of Us are Dead, Tower of God, The God of High School, Lookism, Sweet Home, Hellbound, Our Beloved Summer, Tomorrow, The Sound of Magic, See You in my 19th Life, Unlock My Boss, Bloodhounds, Black Knight, and so many more across Netflix, Amazon, Disney, and others worldwide.

Leading our flagships is the One Billion Club, a premier collection of webtoons that have reached over 1 BILLION views on the platform. Members of the OBC include the #1 New York Times best-selling Lore Olympus, the post-apocalyptic horror Sweet Home (now a hit Netflix series, Season 2 coming 2023), the slice-of-life romance True Beauty (now a live-action kdrama, with an animated series also in production), the fantasy adventure Tower of God (now a hit Crunchyroll anime, Season 2 coming in 2023), and the high school superhero drama UnOrdinary. Other flagships include:

• The zombie high school horror series All of Us are Dead, whose live-action adaptation is the 11th most-watched Netflix series in history (Season 2 coming 2023);
• The high fantasy YA series Cursed Princess Club, Hooky, and Morgana and Oz;
• The dark fantasy comedies Clinic of Horrors, Everything is Fine, Love Advice from the Great Duke of Hell, and Winter Moon;
• The slice-of-life romances Boyfriends, Down to Earth, and Lookism (now a hit Netflix anime).

“Given that WEBTOON is the #1 comic book entertainment app in the world with massive engagement and awareness, the possibilities for creating dynamic brand programs for their original IP are endless,” commented Elan Freedman, Surge Licensing EVP. “In the U.S. alone, WEBTOON touts over 15 million monthly users, which is tremendous with room for major growth. We look forward to introducing the WEBTOON brand and its key titles to potential partners at the upcoming Licensing Expo.”

Genuine Entertainment’s Joe LeFavi stated: “WEBTOON has redefined how creators and fans alike can share and celebrate their favorite stories with a global audience. Boasting one of the biggest fandoms and a veritable treasure trove of IP, it’s an enormous opportunity to build meaningful programs and give this inclusive community more ways to engage with the content and creators they know and love. And since Surge has been championing comic creators since first taking TMNT from comic racks to riches… suffice it to say, they were an ideal fit for the job.”