Dear U

Dear U is a South Korean software development company focused on connecting entertainment companies, artists, and fans through mobile communication services. The business was established in July 2017 under the name Everysing by SM Entertainment, which invested 6 billion won in the venture. Its formation reflected SM Entertainment's interest in combining its experience in artist and fan-club management with dedicated information-technology capabilities. The company changed direction and scale through its merger with Brinicle on January 1, 2019. Brinicle's principal expertise was software development and supply, while the entertainment side of the combined business contributed relationships with artists and agencies. The merger helped establish the operating model that became central to Dear U: the development of a technology platform designed around recurring, direct artist-to-fan communication rather than only conventional social-media distribution. Lee Soo-man entrusted the chief executive role to Ahn Jong-oh, who had also led Brinicle, underscoring the importance assigned to software expertise in the combined company. Dear U's best-known service is Bubble, a subscription-based platform through which fans receive personal-style messages and multimedia content from participating artists. Bubble was launched in February 2020 and initially built on SM Entertainment's artist network. It subsequently expanded through agreements with additional Korean entertainment companies, including JYP Entertainment, FNC Entertainment, Jellyfish Entertainment, WM Entertainment, Brand New Music, Play M Entertainment, Top Media, RBW, and Mystic Story. The service has also been associated with the Lysn application, which provided a broader fan-community and communication environment. The business model is based on paid subscriptions purchased through mobile application marketplaces. Reference material describes a monthly subscription price of 4,500 won during the period discussed and identifies a broad roster of participating groups and solo artists. The same material reports that approximately 70 percent of users were international at that time, making overseas growth a major part of Dear U's platform strategy. The company stated ambitions to add artists from markets such as Japan and the United States and to broaden its service portfolio. Dear U invested in personnel and corporate restructuring as it sought to strengthen its technology capabilities. In March 2021, it announced a 15 million won annual salary increase for all employees, presenting the measure as a way to attract and retain high-quality staff for the development of Bubble and Lysn. In 2021, SM Entertainment also reorganized several affiliated businesses under a new group-management structure intended to streamline operations and focus the wider group more strongly on music and entertainment. JYP Entertainment became a significant shareholder in 2021, acquiring an aggregate 23.3 percent stake according to the reference material. The investment was presented as a way to combine JYP's global artist network with Dear U's platform capabilities and to accelerate Bubble's international development. Dear U also began preparations for a possible KOSDAQ listing in 2021 by submitting a preliminary review request to the Korea Exchange. The planned offering was intended to support international expansion, platform development, and possible new services, including metaverse-related initiatives. The available reference material does not establish the final outcome of that listing process, a current ownership structure, or a current stock-market status. Dear U's identifiable business remains centered on digital entertainment software, mobile fan communities, artist messaging, and the monetization of direct fan relationships.

Dear U began in July 2017 as Everysing, a company established by SM Entertainment with a reported investment of 6 billion won. Its initial purpose was connected to SM's entertainment and digital-service activities, but the business later moved toward a more explicit combination of information technology and artist-fan communication. Avex invested in the company in September 2018 through a capital increase, adding another entertainment-industry connection to the developing platform business. A major organizational turning point came on January 1, 2019, when Everysing merged with Brinicle. Brinicle specialized in software development and supply, complementing SM Entertainment's knowledge of artist management and fan communities. Following the merger, the company operated under the Dear U identity and concentrated on building digital services for entertainment companies and their artists. Ahn Jong-oh, who had led Brinicle, became chief executive. The combined capabilities formed the basis for a service model in which messaging technology and entertainment content were integrated into a single fan-facing product. The most important product development was Bubble. Launched in February 2020, Dear U Bubble used a paid subscription model to deliver messages and multimedia content from participating artists to fans. The service was initially associated with SM Entertainment artists but expanded through agreements with numerous other Korean agencies. Its relationship with Lysn gave Dear U a broader application environment for fan communities and artist communication. The platform's international user base became a central part of the company's growth narrative, with the available reference material reporting that global users represented about 70 percent of users at the time. In 2021, Dear U took several steps to support expansion. In March, it announced a company-wide annual salary increase of 15 million won, explaining that stronger compensation would help attract and retain staff capable of developing Bubble and Lysn. SM Entertainment subsequently announced a wider restructuring of affiliated businesses, including Dear U, as part of an effort to simplify group management and improve business structure. Ownership and strategic relationships also changed in 2021. JYP Entertainment acquired shares that gave it a reported 23.3 percent stake in Dear U. The investment aligned two major Korean entertainment networks around the development of a global fan-platform business and was presented as a source of synergy between JYP's artist relationships and Dear U's communication technology. Dear U then submitted a preliminary review request for a proposed KOSDAQ listing on June 11, 2021. The intended offering was associated with international market entry, further platform expansion, and possible new services such as metaverse-related products. The available material does not confirm whether the proposed listing was completed or provide a current public-market status. Dear U's documented history is therefore defined by its transition from an SM Entertainment-founded digital venture into a software and platform company serving multiple entertainment agencies. Its principal activity remains the operation and development of subscription-based artist-to-fan communication services, especially Bubble, supported by mobile applications, multimedia content, and agency partnerships.

1. 2021Company-wide salary increase

   Dear U announces a 15 million won annual salary increase for all employees to support recruitment and retention of technology personnel.

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2. 2021JYP Entertainment becomes a major shareholder

   JYP Entertainment acquires a reported 23.3 percent stake in Dear U to support the global development of Bubble.

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3. 2021KOSDAQ listing process begins

   Dear U submits a preliminary review request to the Korea Exchange on June 11 as part of a proposed KOSDAQ initial public offering.

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4. 2020Bubble launches

   Dear U launches Bubble as a subscription service for artist messages and multimedia fan communication.

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5. 2019Merger with Brinicle

   Everysing merges with software developer Brinicle on January 1, creating the technology and entertainment foundation for Dear U's later platform services.

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6. 2018Avex invests in the company

   Avex invests in September through a capital increase, strengthening the company's links with the entertainment industry.

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7. 2017Everysing is established

   SM Entertainment establishes the company in July under the name Everysing with a reported investment of 6 billion won.

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A technology platform combining entertainment-industry artist networks with subscription-based, direct artist-to-fan communication.

• Dear U BubbleArtist-to-fan subscription messaging2020

  Bubble is Dear U's flagship mobile communication service. Fans subscribe through an application marketplace to receive messages and multimedia content from participating artists. The product is designed to make artist communication feel more direct and personal than conventional public social-media posts, while giving entertainment agencies a recurring digital-service model. It began with SM Entertainment artists and expanded to artists represented by other Korean agencies, with the reference material emphasizing substantial participation from international users.

• LysnFan community and communication application

  Lysn is a mobile fan-community and communication application associated with Dear U's platform business. It provided an environment for entertainment content and artist-to-fan interaction and served as one of the principal applications whose development motivated Dear U's investment in software personnel. The available material does not provide a complete current product-status description.

• EverysingDigital entertainment service2017

  Everysing was the name under which Dear U was established in 2017. It is identified in the reference material as one of the company's products or services, but the available information does not describe its current operating scope in sufficient detail.

• 2021Company-wide compensation increaseStrategy

  Dear U sought additional technology talent to develop Bubble and Lysn and strengthen its platform competitiveness.

  What changed. The company announced a 15 million won increase in annual salary for every employee.

  Aftermath. The measure was presented as a human-resources investment supporting product development and recruitment.

  Annual salary increase per employee. 15 million won increase (Announced March 2021)

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• 2021JYP Entertainment investmentM&A

  JYP Entertainment sought to expand its influence in platform businesses and connect its global artist network with Dear U's messaging technology.

  What changed. JYP Entertainment acquired shares that gave it a reported 23.3 percent stake in Dear U.

  Aftermath. The investment was intended to accelerate Bubble's development as a global mobile platform.

  Investment amount. Approximately 21.4 billion won (2021 acquisition)

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• 2021Proposed KOSDAQ initial public offeringStrategy

  Dear U sought capital and visibility for overseas expansion, platform development, and possible new services.

  What changed. The company submitted a preliminary listing review request to the Korea Exchange on June 11, 2021.

  Aftermath. The available reference material does not confirm the final outcome of the proposed listing.

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• 2019Merger with BrinicleM&A

  The company needed software-development capabilities to complement SM Entertainment's experience in managing artists and fan communities.

  What changed. Everysing merged with Brinicle on January 1, 2019, after which the combined business developed the Dear U platform model.

  Aftermath. The merger provided the organizational and technical foundation for Bubble and other artist-communication services.

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• 2021Dear U raises employee salaries to strengthen platform development

  Dear U announced a 15 million won annual salary increase for all employees, linking the move to its effort to secure technology talent for Bubble and Lysn.

  Other
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• 2021SM Entertainment reorganizes affiliated businesses

  SM Entertainment announced a restructuring plan involving several affiliated companies, including Dear U, with the stated goal of streamlining group management and creating a more responsible operating structure.

  Other
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• 2021JYP Entertainment acquires a 23.3 percent stake in Dear U

  JYP Entertainment acquired an aggregate 23.3 percent stake in Dear U and described the investment as a means of developing Bubble into a more competitive global mobile platform.

  M&A
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• 2021Dear U submits preliminary KOSDAQ listing review request

  Dear U submitted a preliminary review request to the Korea Exchange as the first step in an intended KOSDAQ initial public offering.

  Other
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1. Dear U