Disney+
Korean Multi-IP Launch
Social, Influencer, Activation
In early 2022, not a whole lot of people knew they could stream Korean dramas on Disney+. Why would they, when platforms like Netflix and Viu were so ahead in the squid game? These incumbents long had the rights to the most famous programmes coming out of Korea and were well adept at producing original Korean content too. Wasn’t Disney+ the land of princesses and superheroes? What did we know of oppas?
We needed prospective audiences to realise there were far more worlds to venture to and love with a Disney+ subscription. So how did we tap on and convince the biggest, most dedicated group of streamers—K-drama fans—to get an account and get streaming with us?
With no budget and just the power of social media, we won hearts over and raised our very own legion of K-fans. (In case you were wondering, of course, our consumer study had us becoming one of them and duly watching K-dramas every single day!) We kicked off a year-long blitz, steeping ourselves deep in the language and culture of our audience to greet them annyeong with our slate of premieres.
Week after week, we built rapport with them through fresh and timely relatable content that reacted to all the latest episodes and hijacked wider events transpiring in pop culture.
When it came down to the most essential pieces that were responsible for educating our audience on the stories at hand, we sure did it all for the plot and got them hooked enough to stream.
Before we knew it, we’d grown a captive audience of our own, turning haters into advocates. We started out with K-fans pleading, “Please don’t let it be on Disney+.” But, we now have them spreading the love they’ve developed for our brand and titles far and wide through organic word-of-mouth. With earnest reviews rallying their following to stream their Disney+ favourites snowballing, it was no surprise that our K-fam eventually championed a Disney+ Original, Moving, to a Baeksang Grand Prize.