Tapas Media founder Chang Kim steps away from the company
The former CEO is officially on a long-term sabbatical, according to his social media
Chang Kim, the founder and CEO of Tapas Media has stepped down from his position with the company, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Kim, who launched the company in March 2012, reportedly announced his decision in a now-deleted post on the professional social networking site, which now lists him as being on “sabbatical” since January 2023. His positions at both Tapas Media and Kakao Entertainment, where he served as Global Strategy Officer, are listed as ending in the same month. (Kakao, a Korean entertainment company, acquired Tapas in 2021.)
Kim’s departure from the company comes six months after Tapas had been hit with major layoffs, with a number of executive positions eliminated in an attempt, according to Kim in an interview with ICV2, for the company to change tack and focus less on "in-house efforts to develop original IP"— a particular surprise, considering that just two months earlier, Tapas had merged with Radish Media in an attempt to grow the publishing footprint of the company in the North American market.
Tapas Media boasts around 9.5 billion total page views, with series on the platform receiving 4 million views per day. Globally, the company boasts more than 75,000 creators, with the majority of its top comics made by female creators.
The reasons for Kim’s move remain unclear at this time, as is the identity of the company’s new CEO.
Expect more on Popverse about this story as it develops.
Tapas is one of the leading webtoon publishers in North America; here’s our guide to 2022’s most popular webtoons.
