Soompi

Soompi is an English-language website providing coverage of Korean pop culture.[2] It has one of the largest international Internet communities for K-pop,[3] mostly concentrated in news and forums. With more than 23 million fans across all platforms, Soompi offers English and Spanish services.[4]

Soompi
Available inEnglish, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Thai
HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States (Global)
Seoul, South Korea (Korean offices)
OwnerRakuten Inc.
(Viki)
URLhttps://www.soompi.com/
Alexa rank 3,673 (September 2019)[1]
RegistrationOptional
Launched1998
Current statusActive

Since its establishment in 1998, Soompi has grown into an authoritative source for Korean popular culture, and is one of the longest-running, and most frequently visited websites providing coverage of K-pop music, celebrity news and entertainment.[5][6][7][8]

At first, its visitors were mostly Koreans residing in foreign nations, with over 1.2 million people visiting the site. Currently, however, the majority of its members are non-Koreans in the United States, Canada, Singapore, the Philippines, and Malaysia, among others.[9][10] The site receives 120 million page views during peak months from more than 23 million fans spanning more than 190 countries.

Soompi was founded in 1998 by Korean American web developer Susan Kang,[11][12] and the site quickly gained traction with fans throughout the world.[10] In February 2011, Soompi was acquired by Enswers, Inc.,[13][14][15] a Seoul-based IT venture company specializing in video search technology,[16] and operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of it. When Enswers was acquired by another company, Soompi found a new home with Crunchyroll, a U.S.-based VOD site that specializes in anime, in 2013. Viki acquired Soompi on August 19, 2015.[17]

Soompi launched Soompi France in 2011 and Soompi Spanish in 2012, and it works closely with major South Korean entertainment agencies such as JYP Entertainment,[18] SM Entertainment,[19] and YG Entertainment.[20][21]

The Soompi brand also encompasses the Soompi Awards,[22] which began in 2005, the international reality talent competition "Rising Legends",[23] and a slate of original programming, including mini-documentary "When You Call My Name" with K-pop group Monsta X and singer-songwriter Gallant. The 2017 Soompi Awards received 100 million votes, and the awards-related hashtags trended worldwide on Twitter over eight consecutive hours.[24]

Soompi celebrated its 20th anniversary in late March 2018.

References
  1. "Soompi.com Site Info". Alexa Internet. Archived from the original on 9 June 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  2. "Soompi.com shows Hallyu where to go". Korea Herald. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  3. "Have You Heard Of Soompi? It's The Largest English Community For The Korean Wave". Advanced Technology Korea. Archived from the original on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  4. Dae-yong, Kim (24 September 2012). "KT - New Strategies for Media & Contents industry". Korea IT Times. Archived from the original on 20 February 2015. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  5. Bue, Jonathan. "K-Pop's Connection to CSUN". Daily Sundial. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2012. of Soompi.com, an English language authority for Korean entertainment.
  6. "Can Girls Generation break through in America?". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 12 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012. “Girls’ Generation are easily the biggest girl group in all of Asia,” says Susan Kang, founder and CEO of Soompi.com, the largest English-language K-pop site.
  7. "Ways to keep the Wave rolling around the world". Korea Joongang Daily. Archived from the original on 25 June 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  8. "Gangname-style viral popularity in US has koreans puzzled gratified". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017.
  9. "Web triggers global renaissance of Korean Wave". Korea Joongang Daily. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  10. "Soompi – A Site Where Netizens Revel in Korean Culture". Koreabrand.net. Archived from the original on 19 January 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  11. "Music Of The Seoul". The Daily. Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  12. "Founder of largest English K-pop site Soompi". Korea Times. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  13. "Enswers Acquires Soompi Korean Entertainment community". allthingsd.com. Archived from the original on 17 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
  14. "Enswers' history". enswersinc.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
  15. "SOOMPI.COM - the Korean Pop Culture Site". Hancinema. Archived from the original on 24 March 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  16. "Translation services make World Wide Web more worldwide". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on 25 May 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  17. "Viki Buys Korean Fan Community Soompi from Peter Chernin's Crunchyroll". Variety. Archived from the original on 23 August 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  18. "JYP x Soompi Rising Legends". soompi.com. Archived from the original on 21 August 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
  19. "Exclusive SNSD Video Interview And Shout Out To Soompi". soompi.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
  20. "Exclusive Look Into YGE Headquarters". soompi.com. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
  21. "KPOPCON Part 1: Soompi Keynote". Kpop Kollective. Archived from the original on 21 June 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  22. Herman, Tamar. "Interactive Soompi Awards Show Immense Growth In K-Pop-Oriented Twitter Activity". Forbes. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  23. "JYP and Soompi present worldwide K-Pop audition program Rising Legends". Hello Asia!. 21 August 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  24. Angela (26 January 2018). "Soompi Awards 2018: Choose the Best in K-Pop & K-Drama". whatakdrama. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
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