YTN

What YTN does

YTN is a South Korean 24-hour news broadcasting company headquartered in Mapo-gu, Seoul, founded in 1993 and operating as a privately held corporation. It delivers continuous live news coverage across politics, economy, society, international affairs, culture, sports, and entertainment through a multi-platform distribution model spanning cable/satellite TV, web (ytn.co.kr), mobile, and major social platforms including YouTube (5.36M+ subscribers), Naver (5.49M+), Facebook (703K+), and X/Twitter (361K+). The company operates a portfolio of sub-brands including YTN Science, YTN Radio, YTN2, YTN DMB, YTN World, and vertical channels for gaming and entertainment, plus a branded YTN Seoul Tower channel.

Underlying technology consists of a 24-hour live broadcasting system with digital content production and distribution infrastructure, producing 100-120 news items daily in MP4 (H.264, 1280x720, 2M bitrate), JPG (1280x720), and XML formats, and supplying this content via VOD and streaming to partner platforms. The company also operates a structured compliance framework including a viewers committee (Broadcasting Act Article 87), a grievance handling committee, and a cyber audit room.

YTN's business model is dual-track. On the consumer side, it provides free news content to the general Korean public and monetizes through TV and digital/mobile advertising. On the B2B side, it operates a content supply business delivering news and programs to other broadcasters and public facilities (Arirang TV, EBS, CATV, Sky life, regional private broadcasters, multi-use facilities) on a licensing/supply basis. The company employs 501-1,000 people and reports no parent company, subsidiaries, or external funding rounds in the available data.

Name

YTN

Legal name

와이티엔

Website

https://ytn.co.kr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

YTN is a privately held South Korean 24-hour news broadcaster operating a multi-channel platform (TV, web, mobile, social) that delivers continuous news coverage to the general Korean public and supplies news content on a B2B basis to other broadcasters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cable News Broadcasting

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (51612), Radio Broadcasting Stations (516110), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (5162)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833), Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832)

akta.pro primary industry

24/7 National & International News Channels (MPABAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

News Talk Radio & Current Affairs Stations (MPABAIAI), Radio Network Distribution & Programming Services (Syndicators, Format Providers) (MPAIAEAH), National Broadcast News Networks (MPABAAAB)

Keywords

• 24-hour news broadcasting
• Cable news network
• Digital news distribution
• News content licensing
• Multimedia broadcasting

Headquarters

HQ city

Mapo

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. TV Advertising: Television advertising during news broadcasts and programs
2. Internet/Mobile Advertising: Online advertising on ytn.co.kr website and mobile platforms
3. News/Program Supply: Supplying news content and programs to other broadcasters and media platforms on a supply basis

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

YTN is a 24-hour South Korean cable and broadcast news network that produces and distributes live news coverage across politics, economy, society, international affairs, culture, sports, and entertainment via TV, radio, DMB, web, mobile, and social media platforms. Beyond consumer-facing broadcasting, YTN supplies VOD/streaming news content in MP4, JPG, and XML formats to other broadcasters and media partners for redistribution, producing approximately 100–120 news items daily.

Product overview

YTN is a 24-hour South Korean news broadcasting network operated by YTN (와이티엔). The company operates a multi-channel platform consisting of its core YTN news channel, specialized sub-brands including YTN 사이언스 (science), YTN 라디오 (radio), YTN2, YTN DMB, and YTN World, plus vertical channels for gaming (game.ytn.co.kr) and entertainment (star.ytn.co.kr). Content distribution services supply VOD, streaming, and digital news content to partner platforms including CATV, Sky life, and regional broadcasters in MP4, XML, and image formats. Additional viewer engagement services include a viewers committee, grievance committee, and cyber audit room.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• YTN 사이언스: YTN Science - a science-focused channel under the YTN brand group
• YTN 라디오
• YTN2
• YTN DMB
• YTN World
• YTN서울타워

Products and services

• YTN Main News Channel YTN's primary 24-hour news broadcasting channel delivering live news coverage across politics, economy, society, international, culture, sports, entertainment, and science categories, accessible via cable, satellite, digital TV, web, and mobile in South Korea.
• YTN Science Science-focused news channel and website under the YTN brand group covering scientific developments and technology news for general audiences.
• YTN Radio Radio broadcasting service offering audio news content and live radio programming within the YTN brand group.
• YTN2 Secondary general-audience channel under the YTN brand group featuring diverse programming and entertainment content.
• YTN DMB Digital Multimedia Broadcasting service within the YTN brand group for mobile-device news consumption.
• YTN World International news service within the YTN brand group providing global news coverage and Korean news for overseas audiences.
• YTN Game Gaming-focused vertical news channel within the YTN brand group covering video game industry news, reviews, and esports coverage.
• YTN Star Entertainment news channel within the YTN brand group covering celebrity news, TV programs, movies, and pop culture.
• News Content Supply Service VOD and streaming news content supply service that delivers approximately 100-120 news items daily in MP4 (H.264, 1280x720, 2M bitrate), JPG (1280x720), and XML formats to partner broadcasters and media platforms such as Arirang TV, EBS, CATV, Sky life, regional private broadcasters, and multi-use facilities.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability3 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• MBC (Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation): MBC is one of Korea's three major terrestrial broadcasters with a broad news, drama, and entertainment portfolio that overlaps YTN's news offering; it is a larger, established player competing for the same Korean general-public audience.
• KBS (Korean Broadcasting System): KBS is Korea's national public broadcaster and the dominant incumbent in Korean news, offering significantly broader programming (drama, variety, sports, news) compared with YTN's news-focused portfolio; it competes for the same audience and ad budgets but with public-broadcaster scale.
• SBS (Seoul Broadcasting System): SBS is one of Korea's three major terrestrial broadcasters with substantial news operations that compete with YTN's 24-hour news coverage; its broader entertainment and drama portfolio makes it an incumbent rather than a direct cable-news peer.

Direct peers

• JTBC: JTBC is a 24-hour comprehensive programming cable channel and direct competitor to YTN in the Korean 24-hour news category, backed by JoongAng Ilbo/Samsung; it competes head-to-head for the same Korean news audience and advertising budgets.
• TV Chosun: TV Chosun is a 24-hour cable news channel owned by Chosun Ilbo, directly competing with YTN for Korean news viewers across politics, economy, and current affairs with a similar multi-platform digital distribution model.
• Channel A: Channel A is a 24-hour comprehensive programming cable news channel backed by Dong-A Ilbo, operating in the same Korean cable news category as YTN with comparable newsroom scale and digital reach.
• MBN (Maeil Broadcasting Network): MBN is one of the four Korean comprehensive programming (24-hour cable news) channels competing directly with YTN, backed by Maeil Business Newspaper, and serves the same horizontal news audience with similar advertising-led revenue model.

Regional players

• Arirang TV: Arirang TV is a Korea-based English-language international broadcaster that is also a YTN content-supply customer via dedicated line; it overlaps YTN in international news distribution but targets overseas rather than domestic Korean audiences.

Others

• Naver News: Naver News is the dominant Korean news aggregation platform and simultaneously YTN's largest distribution partner (5.49M+ channel subscribers); it is a key enabling ecosystem player whose platform dynamics directly shape YTN's digital audience and ad inventory.

Emerging players

• News1: News1 is a Korean news wire and digital news service focused on fast, text-first breaking news distribution; it overlaps with YTN's news supply business and competes for the same online news consumer, though it lacks YTN's TV broadcast reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ytn24
• YouTubeyoutube.com/ytn
• Facebookfacebook.com/ytn.co.kr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ytn

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about YTN