The animation "Dark Moon: Altar of the Moon," based on the worldview of the group Enhypen (ENHYPEN), scored 4.8 out of 5 on the global animation streaming platform Crunchyroll immediately after its release. The original webtoon, which concluded two years ago, topped overall charts in Japan, Latin America, Indonesia, Germany, and other regions, showing a resurgence in popularity.

This animation gained attention as a case of achieving success in the global market solely through story IP, without featuring the faces or names of Enhypen members or the artists themselves. It demonstrates the trend of K-POP idol worldviews expanding beyond music into various content forms.

HYBE is leading the expansion of K-POP IP through an original story strategy. In January 2022, webtoons containing the worldviews of BTS, Enhypen, and Tomorrow X Together (TXT) (TXT) were simultaneously released. BTS's "Seven Fates: Chakho" recorded 15 million cumulative views within two days of release, while Enhypen's "Dark Moon: Altar of the Moon" and Tomorrow X Together (TXT)'s "Boys Chasing Stars" also achieved high view counts in the youth romance and fantasy genres, respectively. By the end of the same year, a total of five original stories were established, including LE SSERAFIM's "Crimson Heart" and &TEAM's "Dark Moon: Gray City." "Crimson Heart" recorded hundreds of thousands of views in Southeast Asian markets such as Indonesia and Thailand.

Kakao Entertainment and SM Entertainment released the NCT worldview webtoon "NCT: Dream Contact" and the web novel "RIIZE&RealRIIZE," which covers the growth of RIIZE, through a strategic collaboration in August 2023. "NCT: Dream Contact" enhanced its artistic quality by collaborating with skilled creators, including award-winning artists from Japanese art exhibitions, while "RIIZE&RealRIIZE" introduced a "faction" format reflecting members' experiences and personalities, leading to the production of a second season.

Rookie group KiiKii from Starship Entertainment collaborated with web novel author Kimppang, the original creator of the drama "Seonjae Upgo Twieo," to produce the web novel "Dear.X: Tomorrow's Me to Today's Me" over ten months. The OST sung by the members was released in sync with the serialization start date and ranked high on music charts without large-scale promotion.

In this way, story IP has established itself as a business model that overcomes the limitations of artist activities and generates stable revenue regardless of variables such as military enlistment, contract expiration, or member changes. Webtoons and web novels derived from K-POP worldviews form independent readerships and function as new external entry points into the entertainment industry.

Expanded IP extends into various media such as web novels, webtoons, dramas, animations, games, and merchandise, maximizing content lifespan. The domestic web novel industry surpassed a 1 trillion won market in 2023, and webtoon distribution infrastructure has recorded hundreds of billions of cumulative global views. Collaborations with global production companies such as Japan's Aniplex are also actively underway. Platforms like Naver and Kakao are targeting the global market through collaborations with entertainment companies.