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Tappytoon is a South Korean digital webtoon platform that was developed and is operated by Contents First Inc., a venture-backed media and entertainment company founded in 2013.

In 2018 it was ranked the number 1 Android Comics App in both North America and Europe, and in the Top 5 iPhone app in the Book category.^[1] Tappytoon surpassed 7 million registered users across 241 countries in November 2022.^[1]

Content

Tappytoon offers English, French, and German titles licensed from Korean and other Asian publishers, such as Kakao Entertainment, Mr. Blue, Jaedam, Haksan and Comico.^[2] The platform also hosts comics that tie into other media like K-drama, K-pop, and games.^[2] Tappytoon may also consider titles depending on reader needs and requests.^[3]

Its Tappytoon Studio imprint, which allows creators to publish original works, began July 2021. A month later, Tappytoon launched its webnovel service. According to Tappytoon co-founder Sun Bang, "having both the novel and webtoon versions creates a synergy so that readers from one version can easily try out the other format, and they end up enjoying both."^[4]

As of December 2022^[update], 78.6% of Tappytoon's readers were from the United States,^[1][5] and the most popular genres of content with them (Americans) were romance (at 57%), Boys Love/BL (at 17%), action (at 12%) and "other" (at 14%).^[4][5]

In interviews with co-founders Ernest Woo and Sun Bang, Tappytoon felt that female readers were overlooked by American superheroes and comics, and so made a conscious effort to attract that demographic to their platform via quality, female-centered stories whose main leads "are out to take charge of their life and love, protect someone, and right some wrong, whether personal or a more significant issue....Empowerment, inspiration, catharsis, and even humor, it's all there, and it resonates with our female readers."^[3][6][7]

Adaptations into other media

Paperback editions

• The Legend of the Northern Blade,an adaptation of Woogack's Buk-geomjeon-gi novel series, was published in Korea in book format by Seoul Media Comics (서울미디어코믹스).
• Bloody Sweet, was published in paperback format by C&C Revolution, Inc. Two volumes were financed via Kickstarter campaigns.^[8] C&C Revolution, Inc. has since been acquired by Tappytoon.^[1] In November 2022, Yen Press announced that they would be publishing the title in paperback as well.^[8]
• Yen Press, as well as its Ize Press imprint, has collected and published in paperback format some of Tappytoon's other titles as well. These include:
  • A Returner's Magic Should Be Special^[9]
  • Daughter of the Emperor^[9]
  • Solo Leveling
  • The Abandoned Empress^[10]
  • The Reason Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion^[9]
  • Who Made Me A Princess

TV shows

What's Wrong with Secretary Kim? and Cherry Blossoms After Winter were adapted into live-action dramas in 2018^[11] and 2022 respectively.

The aforementioned Solo Leveling and Who Made Me a Princess will receive an anime adaptation premiering 2024.

References