'Shinbyeong 4' tops Tving charts for four consecutive weeks, breathing new life into platform

"I was afraid to even start it — worried I'd have nightmares about re-enlisting — but once I did, I ended up binge-watching all the previous seasons." (Viewer comment on Tving's "Shinbyeong 4: Sabotage")

Tving appears to be staging a comeback after struggling to contain the fallout from a personal data breach. The platform's exclusive drama series "Shinbyeong 4: Sabotage" — also airing on cable channel ENA — has sparked a viewing frenzy, drawing a growing number of users to revisit earlier seasons. The franchise's strong performance has reinforced Tving's intellectual property lineup and bolstered the platform's competitive edge.

According to Tving, "Shinbyeong 4" has ranked No. 1 in weekly unique viewers on the platform for four consecutive weeks since its release on Aug. 24.

The popularity has spilled over to earlier installments. Over the same four-week period, the number of paid subscribers attributed to previous seasons — "Shinbyeong," "Shinbyeong 2," "Shinbyeong 3" and a spin-off variety show — rose roughly fivefold compared with the same period prior. "Shinbyeong 3," "Shinbyeong" and "Shinbyeong 2" have all entered Tving's weekly drama top 10 by unique viewers, with the entire series dominating the upper reaches of the chart.

Tving said the "Shinbyeong" franchise starkly demonstrated what it called a "scale-up effect," in which a successful IP expands its own influence across the platform.

"The number of paid subscribers driven by 'Shinbyeong 4' over its first four weeks rose 25 percent compared with the same period for 'Shinbyeong 3,'" a Tving official said. "It has proven the growth formula of a franchise IP that sets a new all-time record with each new season."

Tving's serialized franchise IP has become a reliable driver of subscriber retention, keeping users locked into the platform.

The same effect has been observed with another Tving original, "Yumi's Cells."

According to Tving, "Yumi's Cells Season 3" topped the weekly chart for paid subscriber contributions for four consecutive weeks during its run. Seasons 1 and 2 simultaneously held spots in Tving's weekly drama top 10 by unique viewers for the same four-week stretch.

The paid subscriber figures for the "Yumi's Cells" franchise have also traced a consistent upward curve: Season 3 drew 88 percent more paid subscribers than Season 2, which in turn drew 73 percent more than Season 1 — with each new season setting a fresh record.

"The performance of the 'Shinbyeong' and 'Yumi's Cells' franchises is a prime example of how a well-crafted franchise IP can maximize vitality across the entire platform," a Tving official said. "We will continue to strengthen our original and exclusive franchise IP lineup to keep expanding the synergy between the platform and its content."

Meanwhile, Tving's monthly active users, which had slumped in the wake of the data breach, are also showing signs of recovery. According to data from Mobile Index, Tving's MAU plunged 12.3 percent month-on-month in July, when the platform took the full brunt of the breach fallout. The decline eased to 4.1 percent in August. September MAU figures have yet to be tallied, but industry observers expect the slide to have halted as the influx of viewers drawn by "Shinbyeong 4" gained momentum this month.