Line Corp., mobile messenger app unit of South Korea’s leading online portal operator Naver Corp., launched a live video-streaming mobile platform in Germany in a move to make a foray into Europe where video-related services are immensely popular among young people.

According to Naver on Friday, Line recently launched the German language version of its live video streaming app Line Live. The app, which can be used via a Line or Twitter account, is an interactive service that allows its users to not only live-stream videos but also decorate them with stamps while viewers can post real-time comments.

It is the first time that Line has offered the service outside Japan. The app, which was first launched in December 2015, has become popular in Japan with the number of monthly active users reaching 24 million.

The company aims to repeat the success of the service it made in Japan in Europe after first testing people’s reception to it in Germany. In Europe, live video streaming has rapidly emerged as a hot trend among youth. An unnamed official from Line said Line Live in Germany mainly targets young people in their late teens.

For the latest service in Germany, Line teamed up with one of Germany’s major private broadcasters ProSiebenSat.1 to supply stable contents. It will also partner with the country’s big entertainment firm Starwatch Entertainment and Studio 71, a digital platform with over 7 billion monthly video views.

Although Line’s core business lies on its messenger app, the company is seeking to expand its presence in the new market with its service that offers a unique concept, connecting the world with live-stream videos.

By Oh Chan-jong

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]