Tving goes global as CJ ENM, Warner Bros. Discovery ink partnership

Warner Bros. Discovery and CJ ENM announced Thursday an agreement on a strategic content production and distribution partnership designed to deepen the global reach of Korean dramas.

At the heart of the deal is Tving, the CJ ENM-affiliated streaming platform, launching a branded hub on HBO Max. HBO Max is Warner Bros. Discovery’s US-based subscription service.

The dedicated Tving hub, set to roll out in early 2026, will be available in 17 Asia-Pacific markets, including Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

The hub will grant HBO Max subscribers access to premieres of Tving’s new K-drama titles, alongside existing scripted and unscripted entertainment from CJ ENM and Tving’s library. Ahead of the launch, audiences can begin engaging with select titles as early as November, including the premiere of the thriller romance series "Dear X," starring Kim You-jung, which will debut Nov. 6.

The two companies also announced they will co-invest and co-produce original Korean dramas for global distribution on HBO Max.

Further details on the Tving-branded hub and content line-up will be shared in the coming months, according to CJ ENM.

This marks the first international push for Tving, the CJ ENM-affiliated streaming platform launched in 2020. Among major Korean streaming services, only Wavve’s Kocowa, which debuted in the US in 2017, and Watcha, which launched in Japan in 2020, have provided access to global audiences.

"With global expansion being Tving’s priority for 2025, its movements are geared towards Asian and North American markets," said a Tving official.

As of June, analytics firm WiseApp Retail reported that among Korean iOS and Android users, Netflix led the market with 13.93 million users, capturing a 40 percent share. Coupang Play followed with 21 percent (7.32 million), Tving with 17 percent (5.73 million), Wavve with 7 percent (2.53 million), and Disney+ with 6 percent (1.9 million). Watcha trails in eighth with 2 percent (530,000).

Meanwhile, Tving and Wavve have been pursuing a merger since 2023 to combine their content libraries and bolster their market position, receiving conditional approval from Korea’s Fair Trade Commission in June. The conditional approval required them to maintain current subscription rates through 2026.