Kakao is preparing a paid membership service that integrates major affiliate services centered around KakaoTalk.
According to the IT industry on September 2, Kakao is working on a paid membership service called 'Kakao Membership.' While there is speculation about a possible launch as early as next month, the specific release date and service details have not yet been finalized.
Services being considered for membership integration include KakaoTalk's emoticons and gift features, Kakao Mobility's taxi service, Kakao Entertainment's Melon, webtoons, and web novels, as well as Kakao Style's fashion platform and Kakao VX's screen golf.
It is reported that the membership will allow users to pay a monthly subscription fee to access some services for free or at discounted rates, as well as receive benefits such as discount coupons for various services. This strategy aims to expand service usage among KakaoTalk users by bundling multiple affiliate services into a single membership.
There is also speculation about the potential integration of external services with KakaoTalk. Kakao has been collaborating with OpenAI to provide 'ChatGPT for Kakao' within KakaoTalk, raising the possibility that future membership benefits could include external services.
Kakao's push for a paid membership aligns with its restructuring efforts to connect core businesses such as artificial intelligence (AI), advertising, and commerce around KakaoTalk.
Jeong Sin-a, the designated CEO of Kakao AI, previously announced plans for collaboration between Coupang Eats and KakaoTalk using agentic AI during a conference call discussing second-quarter results.
Restructuring is also underway. Kakao resolved to split into Kakao AI and Kakao X on August 21. The company plans to complete the split by January after an extraordinary shareholders' meeting in December.
A Kakao representative stated, 'The launch date and specific details of Kakao Membership have not been determined yet.'
* This article has been translated by AI.
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