Tving bounces back as '100 Days of Deception' tops ratings

Tving is showing signs of recovery after being rocked by a personal data breach.

The streaming platform was the only major service to post a monthly active user gain last month, shaking off the fallout from the data leak.

Expectations are running high that "100 Days of Deception," which began airing on tvN this month, will drive further user growth for Tving after the drama series claimed the No. 1 spot in its time slot.

According to mobile data tracker Mobile Index, Tving's monthly active users in September reached about 9.99 million, up 22.6 percent — or about 1.84 million — from the previous month.

Netflix saw its MAU fall 4.3 percent over the same period, accelerating a downward trend. Coupang Play dropped 8.6 percent, Disney Plus 6.9 percent and Wavve 1.9 percent, making Tving the only platform to post a gain of more than 20 percent.

A separate tracker, WiseApp, also showed Tving as the only platform to grow. Tving's September MAU on WiseApp reached about 7.17 million, up 23.1 percent from the previous month.

Netflix fell 7.1 percent on WiseApp, while Coupang Play dropped 7.6 percent, Disney Plus 19.8 percent and Wavve 11.1 percent.

Tving's MAU surge appears to have been partly driven by a compensation program it launched in response to the data breach, which helped bring subscribers back to the platform and allowed it to reclaim second place in the streaming rankings from Coupang Play.

There is growing optimism that the MAU rebound will carry into this month rather than prove a one-time effect.

A key driver is "100 Days of Deception," the tvN drama series that began airing Oct. 10 and has generated a strong early response, adding momentum to Tving's user growth.

The series follows a top pickpocket-turned-spy in colonial-era Korea and an elite interpreter for the Japanese Government-General of Joseon, who find themselves face to face at the heart of enemy territory in a 100-day espionage romance.

The series had already generated buzz before its premiere, with actor Kim Yu-jeong in the lead role — the same actor who carried "Dear X," one of Tving's biggest hits last year.

"100 Days of Deception" is on the verge of breaking the 10 percent viewership mark after just four episodes. According to Nielsen Korea, the fourth episode, which aired Sunday, averaged a 9.0 percent nationwide household rating.

That figure is the show's highest yet and places it first in its time slot across all channels, including terrestrial broadcasters.

Whether Tving can quickly build on its earnings recovery is also drawing attention. The platform posted an operating profit of 6 billion won ($4.47 million) in the second quarter of this year — its first profit since launching as an independent entity. The key question now is whether it can sustain that momentum after absorbing one-time costs such as the data breach compensation payouts.