HYBE (Healing Yoga, Brain Education) is a South Korean company established in February 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management, concert production, and music publishing company. It owns multiple labels, such as Big Hit Music, Source Music, and Pledis Entertainment, among many others.

As if that weren’t enough, HYBE is also entering the gaming world to diversify its intellectual property portfolio. In 2022, it acquired a stake in game developer Flint, and in early 2024, the brand’s gaming unit invested $21.8 million in developer Aqua Tree and $1.45 million in Action Square, both based in South Korea.

This project is called HYBE 2.0, and according to its CEO, Jason Jaesang Lee, they are already prepared to “play a crucial role in the future of HYBE’s entertainment businesses.” This initiative is based on the idea that both music and games have passionate user communities who seek, in addition to consuming, to engage in a community. This is key for commercialization due to the high loyalty of this type of user.

After the announcement, the company confirmed that its video game unit, HYBE Interactive Media, had raised $80 million to expand its game development and publishing efforts, with additional investments from IMM Investment and parent company HYBE. The goal is to “strengthen its competitiveness in the global gaming market and diversify its business in terms of game publishing and development to secure full-service gaming capabilities.”

The gaming world continues to grow, and HYBE does not want to miss the opportunity to invest in it, as technologies improve and user demands increase simultaneously. They relate this to the passion for music: “When it comes to new releases, demands, and needs, there are many common points” between both audiences. Since they already have sales strategies related to this, they found it useful to enter this market niche.

The team clarified that this investment has nothing to do with stagnation in the music industry, but rather with the fact that “both games and music are based on IP,” and they have “good capabilities and expertise in exploiting IP-based businesses.” They also assured that HYBE understands fan demands and how to respond to them through marketing and other events. It is not a collaboration but an integration of both worlds.

Understanding that entertainment patterns are changing, they consider it essential at a corporate level to explore new business opportunities and prepare for what they call “The Next Entertainment.” They also confirmed that HYBE is already “engaging in discussions to form partnerships with leading players in each of these fields.”

This cross-media approach by HYBE was already implemented five years ago by Sony Group Corp, which has been blending video game creation with its music and films since 2019. Even in early 2020, Sony Corporation of America opened Sony Immersive Music Studios in Los Angeles, focused on “developing immersive musical experiences through the power of creativity and technology.”, and the list keeps growing.

According to Jason Jaesang Lee, "HYBE is very good at detecting future trends and proactively preparing for new business models." However, it is not entirely new, as, in addition to Sony, Warner, and Universal Music have not lagged behind in this blend of gaming and music industries.