Soop CEO calls situation 'grave' as profits halve, top streamer admits earnings have fallen

"The current situation is grave." — Lee Min-won, CEO of Soop

Soop, the live-streaming platform formerly known as AfreecaTV, is in a state of crisis after years of record-breaking quarterly earnings driven by popular streamers. Profits have been cut nearly in half, and CEO Lee Min-won said he recognizes the situation as "grave."

Even the platform's top earners are feeling the squeeze. Gwajapseyeon, who won Soop's 2025 Streamer of the Year award, appeared on a YouTube channel and said she had once earned as much as 100 million won ($69,400) in a single day — but added that was two years ago and her income has been declining since.

Soop disclosed Friday that its consolidated operating profit for the second quarter of this year came in at a preliminary 12.6 billion won, down 57.9 percent from the same period last year. Sales fell 11.2 percent year-on-year to 103.8 billion won, while net profit dropped 61.1 percent to 8.7 billion won.

Speaking immediately after the earnings release, Lee said the company must take a hard look at itself. "This is a moment when we need to soberly assess the current situation and make changes — not just in terms of short-term earnings, but also in terms of the growth of the streamer and content ecosystem," he said, adding that the company would focus on bringing in new streamers and users while boosting engagement among existing ones.

Soop's primary revenue source is its virtual-gift system, known as "star balloons," which viewers purchase and send to streamers, with the proceeds split between the streamer and the platform. Star balloon revenue had set a new record every quarter, but that growth streak snapped this year.

Gwajapseyeon explained the revenue-sharing structure, saying Soop takes roughly 20 percent, with regular streamers keeping 60 percent, top-tier streamers 70 percent and partner streamers 80 percent. She also walked back an earlier claim that she earned around 3 billion won, saying that was "when things were going well" and that she no longer earns that much.

About 30,000 streamers are currently estimated to be active on Soop, and the platform draws an average of more than 2 million monthly users. The high incomes of popular streamers sparked a wave of interest in the profession among people in their 20s and 30s. The reality, however, is far less glamorous: while a handful of top streamers pull in hundreds of millions of won a month, most earn less than a living wage.

Meanwhile, AfreecaTV rebranded as Soop after 18 years under its original name, and also retired the "BJ" title — short for "broadcast jockey" — in favor of "streamer."