Nexon bets W250b on new IP hunt, game ecosystem growth

Nexon is making a bold move, committing up to 250 billion won ($181 million) to uncover new intellectual properties that will drive its future growth. Rather than simply extending the lifespan of existing popular IPs, the company is throwing its full weight behind finding next-generation global blockbusters.

The company believes that strengthening the broader game ecosystem is essential to reinforcing its own growth foundation. It plans to begin reviewing investments in earnest in the second half of this year, marking the start of a long-term effort to build out that ecosystem.

According to the game industry on Monday, Nexon will launch a long-term investment program worth up to 250 billion won in partnership with the government and specialized game venture capital firms. The program aims to identify innovative IPs from early-stage developers and support their scale-up into global brands.

The core purpose of the investment is to expand what Nexon calls its "future growth engine." The company sees the current era of AI transformation as the optimal moment to secure next-generation global IPs and technological capabilities ahead of the curve.

Nexon plans to use the investment program as a "strategic radar" for spotting promising IP candidates early. Investment targets will focus on three pillars directly tied to Nexon's future business model: new IPs with global expansion potential, next-generation live-service games built on user acquisition marketing, and innovative developers leveraging AI technology.

Nexon's "selection and concentration" investment strategy — placing firm bets on verified partners — is also becoming more refined.

The company will inject large-scale growth capital at the moment partners need it most, such as around the closed beta test phase when they are transitioning from early development into full-scale global live service and marketing. Through this approach, Nexon aims to secure long-term business alliances with partners who will help pioneer future markets together.

Nexon has also streamlined its public-private partnership structure to maximize investment efficiency.

Through Nexon Partners, a newly established investment subsidiary, Nexon has teamed up with game-focused venture capital firm Kona Venture Partners to launch a 120 billion won strategic fund called the "Kona Global IP Investment Partnership." The fund incorporates 60 billion won from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's IP account under the Korea Culture Promotion Fund, generating roughly twice the strategic leverage relative to Nexon's direct contribution, the company said.

Under the structure, Kona Venture Partners leads early-stage sourcing and development from the seed through Series A rounds, while Nexon Partners co-invests at the Series A stage and participates as a direct investor in subsequent rounds.

The game industry has taken particular note of Nexon's decision to adopt an "open ecosystem model" in building its future growth engine, rather than the one-sided approach of requiring publishing contracts from partners.

The reasoning is that raising the overall fitness of the ecosystem will in turn elevate the quality of the growth drivers Nexon can secure for itself. Nexon said this approach reflects the same philosophy of mutual growth that underpinned the Nexon & Partners Center, launched in 2012 to provide free space and infrastructure to developers.

The first round of investment reviews will begin in earnest in the second half of this year. Kim Han-jun, Nexon's chief investment officer, said the company will "firmly build out a long-term ecosystem investment and future growth engine program — filling the gaps in the early-stage investment market through public-private cooperation and ensuring that promising startups we discover can grow alongside Nexon on the global stage."