K-pop’s internationalization in the product adaptation and the upstream music supply chain in Korea, China, Japan, and the West

Abstract

The success of Korean popular music (K-pop) in foreign markets has attracted considerable attention from researchers. Previous studies have highlighted the factors in K-pop’s international success, such as its idol management system, marketing strategies, and digital distribution channels. However, to the best of our knowledge, the contributions of product adaptation and upstream music supply chains to K-pop’s international success have received little attention. To substantiate this argument, we analyse the formula setting of K-pop from the 1990s to the present and the efforts of the founders of entertainment agencies (e.g. SM, JYP, and YG) to model their success in the global market. The argument presented here theoretically contributes to international business studies and has implications for the success of intangible products in foreign markets.

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