Kakao
Native name | 주식회사 카카오 |
|---|---|
| Company type | Public |
| KRX: 035720 | |
| Industry | Internet |
| Founded | 2010 (original company; as Kakao Inc.) 1 October 2014 (current incarnation) |
| Founder | Brian Kim |
| Headquarters | Jeju City, South Korea |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Stephan Kim (chairman, head of corporate alignment center) Shina Chung (CEO) |
| Products | |
| Revenue | KRW₩ 7.87 trillion (2024) |
| KRW₩ 460 billion (2024) | |
| KRW₩ -162 billion (2024) | |
| Total assets | KRW₩ 25.77 trillion (2024) |
| Total equity | KRW₩ 13.94 trillion (2024) |
| Owners |
|
Number of employees | 10,644 (2020) |
| Subsidiaries | Kakao Entertainment Kakao Games Kakao Friends Kakao Mobility |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 카카오 |
| RR | Kakao |
| MR | K'ak'ao |
| Website | kakaocorp |
Kakao Corporation (Korean: 카카오) is a South Korean internet conglomerate headquartered in Jeju City. It was formed through the merger of Daum Communications and the original Kakao Inc. in 2010. The company was renamed Daum Kakao in 2014. In 2015, it was rebranded once more, reverting simply to Kakao.
The KakaoTalk messaging app dominates in South Korea, and after launching in March 2010, the service gained around 90% of domestic market share in 2015. In January 2016, Kakao acquired a 76.4% stake in LOEN Entertainment, a large South Korean entertainment company, for $1.5 billion; it was later rebranded to Kakao M. The company has gained further prominence through KakaoTalk, a free mobile instant messaging application for smartphones, with text and call features.