Asian channels operator, KC Global Media Asia, launched IP distribution arm, KC Global Media Distribution, this afternoon, kicking off the new initiative with Taiwan series, "Breeze by the Sea", and opening its doors to  conversations with third-party producers to build a rights catalogue.

The new division is led by Bonnie Wiryani, VP, revenue & head of content sales, KC Global Media, which operates channel brands – AXN, Animax, ONE, GEM, and FAST Channel, KCM.

KC Global Media has also teamed up with Mocha Chai Laboratories ("Wonderland") in Singapore; Empire of Arkadia (EOA), led by industry veteran Fotini Paraskakis; and Monochromatic Pictures as part of the expanded direction.

KC Global Media Distribution "complements the organisation’s vertically integrated business model, focusing on long-term partnerships and expanding its footprint in the global media landscape," company co-founders Andy Kaplan (chairman) and George Chien (CEO/president) said during today's announcement at the ATF market in Singapore.

"KC Global Media is a content creator and distributor. Distributing content, aside from what we do with our channels to affiliates, is a natural extension and evolution of our business, and so we've been looking to find opportunities to acquire and distribute content. We came across this particular project... and we thought it would be a great way to launch our distribution company," the L.A.-based Kaplan, in Singapore for the launch, said.

Chien added that the channels distribution team was in constant contact with platforms across the region, and that requests for additional content had increased. "That's what the trigger was," he said. 

"We think we can do both channel and programme distribution," Kaplan said. 

"Our footprint and our place in Southeast Asia, creates an opportunity for us to be a conduit for third-party producers who are trying to get into Southeast Asia, who don't necessarily know how to do it, and for content producers in Southeast Asia who are trying to get out to the rest of the world. We can drive it both ways...  by virtue of our experience and footprint, we can be that for independent producers, both in Asia and and elsewhere," Kaplan added.

"Breeze By The Sea" is the Taiwanese remake of Korean drama, "Top Star U Back", by Taiwanese production house, Deepwaters Digital Support. Set in the coastal town of Kinmen Island, the 18-episode series directed by Peter Ho is about a diverse group of characters as they navigate personal challenges and collective dreams. The series stars Chen Bo Lin and Puff Kuo from Taiwan and Hong Hui Fang and Fann Wong from Singapore.

"Breeze By The Sea" premieres on 14 December 2024 on KC Global Media's AXN Taiwan and streams in over 170 countries exclusively through Rakuten Viki and in 16 markets via Viu on the same day.

The distribution division plans to offer multiple genres, including drama, reality and anime

"We're going to be very selective," Chien says. "We're not about mass distribution. Part of what we really look for is going back to the heart of what our DNA is, which is culturally relevant stories".