SEOUL ¨C ¡°Baby Shark (Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo)¡± is the YouTube sensation that¡¯s been viewed more than 2 billion times and made the Billboard Hot 100 chart last week as its top new entrant. The jingle has also become such an earworm that late-night-show host Jimmy Kimmel proposed throwing those responsible in jail for life.
Love or hate it, the South Korean company behind the one-and-a-half minute song about a family of sharks is now seeking to capitalize on the success by expanding its kid-oriented entertainment business. Seoul-based SmartStudy Co.¡¯s Pinkfong is planning to release short videos via Netflix Inc., a cartoon series and a musical in North America this year, one of the company¡¯s founders said in an interview this week. The startup, which has recently signed various merchandising deals, may also develop games that work with Amazon.com Inc.¡¯s Alexa and Alphabet Inc.¡¯s Google Home voice assistants, he said.
The popularity of the sing-along builds on Korea¡¯s emergence as an entertainment powerhouse. Korean pop, or K-pop, has grown into a $5 billion industry thanks to the success of the likes of boy-band BTS, which has signed commercial deals with big companies from Hyundai Motor Co. to Barbie-maker Mattel Inc., and Psy, whose ¡°Gangnam Style¡± is at more than 3 billion views and counting.
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