Korea's CJ ENM Launches Saudi Arabia Subsidiary in Major Middle East Expansion

Yahoo

6 days ago

K-content powerhouse CJ ENM has established a wholly owned subsidiary in Riyadh, becoming the first Korean entertainment company to set up operations in Saudi Arabia. The new entity, CJ ENM Middle East, marks a significant milestone in what the company has declared its 'first official year of global expansion,' coinciding with the group's 30th anniversary in 2025.
'Establishing a presence in Saudi Arabia allows us to actively engage in emerging global markets and strengthen our global competitiveness,' said Yoon Sang-hyun, CEO of CJ ENM.
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Positioning the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region as a strategic growth engine, CJ ENM says the subsidiary will facilitate collaborations across music, television, film, and live entertainment — including both scripted and unscripted formats. Plans include localized audition programs built around the company's established creative ecosystem, talent development projects with regional studios, and large-scale K-pop concerts using both CJ ENM's and third-party IP.
'The MENA region, and Saudi Arabia in particular, presents unprecedented potential for cultural and commercial collaboration,' added Hyun Soo Kim, the CJ exec who has been named general manager of CJ ENM Middle East. 'To build strong local networks and ensure stable operations, we are partnering with Sela — Saudi Arabia's leading live events and experiences company — to expand the influence of K-culture.'
CJ ENM signed a strategic partnership with Sela in late 2024, building on earlier collaborations with Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Culture (2022) and Manga Productions (2023). The company has also staged consecutive editions of its flagship K-pop fan festival KCON in Riyadh (2022 and 2023), and recently inked a content licensing deal with Shahid, the MENA region's largest local Arabic-language streaming platform, to deliver 20 premium Korean dramas to regional audiences.
CJ ENM remains best known to Hollywood as the producer of Oscar-winning Parasite, hit K-dramas like Queen of Tears, and K-pop performance brands including KCON and the MAMA Awards. The group operates production powerhouses including Studio Dragon, Fifth Season, and CJ ENM Studios, as well as Korea's leading streamer, TVING.
Amid the ongoing liberalization around entertainment in Saudi Arabia, global entertainment ocmpanies continue to view the country as a key frontier for global growth, eying a population with 62 percent of its consumers under the age of 30 and digitally engaged. The country has invested heavily in cultural development as part of its Vision 2030 national roadmap, making entertainment a strategic pillar of its post-oil economy.
CJ ENM says the Riyadh office will serve as a regional hub, working closely with headquarters in Seoul to accelerate content development and partnerships across the MENA region.
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