Kakao M Explained
Kakao M Corp. |
Native Name: | 주식회사 카카오엠 (full) (주)카카오M (shortened) |
Native Name Lang: | ko |
Type: | Public Jusikhoesa (J.H.) |
Founder: | Min Yeong-bin |
Fate: | Merged into KakaoPage, subsequently renamed Kakao Entertainment, business and subsidiaries were put up as the Kakao Entertainment M Company division |
Successor: | Kakao Entertainment |
Key People: | (Until March 2, 2021) Stephan Kim (CEO)[1] [2] [3] Kim Young-suk (EVP/Head of Music Content Company) Jang Sai-jung (EVP/Head of Video Content Company) |
Genre: | Various |
Revenue: | US$ 323.2 million (2014)[4] |
Operating Income: | KRW 65.9 billion (2015) KRW 58.4 billion (2014) |
Net Income: | KRW 50.6 billion (2015) KRW 45.7 billion (2014) |
Assets: | KRW 303.8 billion |
Assets Year: | 2014 |
Num Employees: | 361 (as of) |
Parent: | YBM Group (1978–2005) SK Group (2005–2016) Affinity Equity Partners (2013–2016)[5] Kakao Corp. (2016–2021)[6] [7] |
Divisions: | see list |
Subsid: | see list |
Former Name: | Seoul Records (1978–2000, 2005–2008) YBM Seoul Records (2000–2005) LOEN Entertainment (2008–2018) |
Location City: | Seoul |
Location Country: | South Korea |
Area Served: | Worldwide |
Num Locations: | 3 (see list) |
Module: | Child: | yes | Hangul: | 카카오 M | Rr: | Kakao M | Mr: | K'ak'ao M |
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Kakao M (; formerly Seoul Records, YBM Seoul Records and LOEN Entertainment) was a South Korean entertainment company established by Min Yeong-bin in 1978. It was one of the largest co-publisher companies in South Korea. The company operated as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management, concert production company, and music publishing house.
, the company was the leading record company in South Korea by net revenue according to the statistics compiled by the Korea Music Content Industry Association (KMCIA) through the Gaon Music Chart (30.4%); it was also the second leading company in terms of album sales (25.4%).[8] LOEN Entertainment became a subsidiary of Kakao in January 2016 and was subsequently renamed two years later.
Online music sales accounted for most of the company's profit, with 93.9% of revenue coming from online music sales. The label also distributed CDs of some other entertainment agencies in South Korea through its branch 1theK, but made less than 5% of its revenue through them.[9]
On March 2, 2021, the company became defunct upon merging into KakaoPage.[10] The merger resulted in the formation of a new company, Kakao Entertainment.[11]
History
1978–2008: Founding of Seoul Records
Kakao M was founded as Seoul Records in 1978 by Min Yeong-bin as a subsidiary of YBM Sisa, a company mainly involved in creating language-learning tapes.[12] The company was officially registered in 1982, and in 1984 it began to produce and distribute records of classical and traditional music. It was registered as a venture capital company in 1999 when it began to sell albums while operating an online shop. In 2000, the company's name was changed to YBM Seoul Records and it began to operate on KOSDAQ. The company joined the IFPI in 2003. Korean conglomerate SK Telecom bought a 60% share of the company in 2005, and YBM Seoul Records subsequently became part of SK Group.[13]
2008–2016: Name change to LOEN Entertainment
As of 2008, the company was known as LOEN Entertainment. LOEN stood for: Live On Entertainment Networks andLOve + ENtertainment
LOEN took charge of SK Telecom's online music distribution service, MelOn, in 2009. MelOn is currently the most used online music sales site in South Korea.[14] [15]
In 2012, the company signed a deal with streaming site Viki so that content from their artists (such as IU, Brown Eyed Girls and Drunken Tiger) would be featured on their site.[16]
In August 2012, the recording artists under LOEN collaborated to release a collaborative EP titled LOEN Tree Summer Story under the collective title 'LOEN Tree'.[17]
On July 18, 2013, Affinity Equity Partners, through its subsidiary Star Invest Holdings Ltd., bought 52.56% of LOEN Entertainment's shares, leaving SK Group with only 15%. Five months later, Star Invest Holdings acquired RealNetworks, Inc.'s 8.83% stake in the company.[18] The company was reorganized to include two labels: "LOEN Tree" (Jo Yeong-cheol) and "Collabodadi" (Shinsadong Tiger).[19]
On December 18, 2013, LOEN Entertainment acquired 70% of shares in Starship Entertainment, making it an independent subsidiary of the company.[20]
2016–2021: Acquisition by Kakao and name change
On January 11, 2016, LOEN Entertainment was acquired by Kakao Corporation.
On May 11, 2017, LOEN Entertainment announced its strategic drama production alliance with CJ E&M's drama production subsidiary Studio Dragon Corporation. Among the plans under the alliance is producing dramas based on web novels and webtoons on KakaoPage and Daum Webtoons (which copyrights are managed by Podotree, the web literature subsidiary of Kakao).[21] (LOEN Entertainment first entered the drama production industry three years ago through the cable-web drama Another Parting, which starred Seo In-guk and Wang Ji-won.) On August 25, LOEN Entertainment announced that its joint venture with Studio Dragon will be called as Mega Monster.[22]
The company has also signed actress Kim So-hyun through setting up her own independent label, E&T Story Entertainment, which is led by her long-time manager Park Chan-woo.[23]
Upon approval by the company's board of directors in a December 20 meeting, the company is known as Kakao M Corporation since March 23, 2018.[24] The letter M in the new corporate name stands for three things: Melon (the company's flagship online music service), Music (the company's core business) and Media (another business that the company will advance to in the future). The company will now also have a corporate catchphrase, We Entertain.[25] [26]
Barely a month before the company's relaunch under its new name, Sean Seong-hoon Park resigned from both his positions as CEO of the company and chief strategy officer of its parent company, and later moved to Netmarble Games. He was replaced by Melon division head Lee Jae-wook.[27]
On February 28, 2021, Kakao M's music was removed from Spotify after its licensing deal with the streaming service expired. They had addressed the removal in a statement, citing the streaming service as the party who had ensued it.[28] On March 11, 2021, Kakao M renewed its licensing deal with Spotify.[29]
In March 2021, Kakao M and KakaoPage merged into a company named Kakao Entertainment, while having its own representative system under the name "M Company" there.[30]
Corporate identity
Company name
The company name was Kakao M, the letter M standing for:
- Melon (the company's flagship online music service)
- Music (the company's core business)
- Media (another business that the company would advance to in the future)
Catalog numbers
, Kakao M used two types of catalog number codes for its releases: the L10000**** series (later at the -5000 suffix) and the L20000**** series (later at the -1000 suffix).
Controversies
Price fixing
2011
LOEN Entertainment, along with then-parent SK Telecom, was one of the 15 companies fined and sued by the Korean FTC for price rigging in 2011. The company was fined $9.6 million for its role in the scheme.
2016
On October 9, 2016, the Supreme Court of Korea handed out a 100 million won fine each to LOEN Entertainment and its closest competitor Genie Music (then known as KT Music) for colluding in price fixing, dating back to a case filed in 2008. Co-CEO Shin Won-soo, who was the sole CEO at the time being, was also sentenced to pay 10 million won.[31]
Stealing royalties
On September 26, 2019, it was revealed that 3 former executives of the company have been charged with stealing 18.2 billion won in royalties from Melon, artists, and producers.[32]
Incredible promotion conflict
In 2013, LOEN Entertainment made a deal with C-JeS Entertainment to promote and distribute Junsu's second studio album Incredible. Days before the album's release, C-Jes was reportedly notified by LOEN that they would distribute the album but had scrapped plans for promotional marketing and broadcasting Junsu's upcoming showcase on MelOn, although they would be able to broadcast it on LOEN TV. Promotional banners regarding the album's release on MelOn also disappeared from LOEN's social media accounts. C-JeS subsequently threatened to remove mentions of LOEN from Junsu's upcoming showcase and to file for a civil appeal to the Fair Trade Commission and Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission.[33]
In response, LOEN Entertainment stated that they were still in discussions regarding the album's promotion and that nothing had been confirmed prior to the relevant article's release. They pointed to the showcase event page on MelOn's homepage still being up as evidence that promotions were going ahead as planned. C-JeS responded saying that they had begun receiving pre-orders for the album and entries for the showcase event without a response from LOEN.[34] [35]
Following media attention, the two companies met on July 8 and resolved the dispute. Incredible was promoted and distributed by LOEN as planned.[36]
Business
Kakao M had three companies, a concept known as a "company in company" (CIC). The company also planned to set up another one in the future.[37] [38]
Melon Company
Melon Company[39] was Kakao M's online music service company, operating Melon (short for melody on),[40] [41] the most popular music service in Korea, with 59% of all users in South Korea . That year Soompi ranked MelOn as the third most influential entity in the K-pop industry.[42]
Music Content Company
Music Content Company[43] was Kakao M's music content production company, which included the music content brand 1theK (which was known as LOEN Music before February 2014), the ticket selling portal Melon Ticket[44] and distributed over 300 titles per year, working with independent agencies to invest in music production. The name '1theK' indicated its aim of creating one source for worldwide K-pop content.[45]
Multilabel
Kakao M managed its artists within the companies under its Music Content Company, including LOEN Tree (2012) and Collabodadi (2014). Collabodadi artists were moved to LOEN Tree in September 2015 and later LOEN Tree was renamed as Fave Entertainment in February 2017.
Kakao M acquired independent label Starship Entertainment in 2013 and Cube Entertainment subsidiaries label A Cube Entertainment (which later was renamed Plan A Entertainment) in 2015, as well as King Kong Entertainment (which was acquired by Starship in 2015).
In June 2016, Kakao M established an independent label Mun Hwa In.
In December 2017, Kakao M established a one-person agency E&T Story Entertainment for actress Kim So-hyun, which was led by her long-time manager Park Chan-woo.[46] As January 2018, Kakao M's independent label Plan A Entertainment has taken over the agency.
On June 27, 2018, Kakao M made strategic investments and created partnerships with three actor management agencies BH Entertainment, J.WIDE Company, Management SOOP, and Korea's leading advertisement model casting agency, Ready Entertainment in order to globalize its content.[47]
On January 13, 2019, Kakao M acquired independent label Blossom Entertainment.[48]
On February 13, 2019, Kakao M released a statement that Plan A Entertainment and Fave Entertainment will be merging into Play M Entertainment on April 1.[49]
On January 6, 2020, Kakao M established a new label, EDAM Entertainment, to manage their long-time soloist IU.[50]
Video Content Company
Video Content Company[51] was Kakao M's media production company, which included Krispy Studio (a web content production company) and Mega Monster (formerly Story Plant, a drama production company that Kakao M co-owned with CJ E&M subsidiary Studio Dragon Corporation).
Just almost a week after its name change, Kakao M (through Krispy Studio) acquired a majority (65.7%) stake in Nylon Media Korea, publisher of the Korean edition of beauty and fashion magazine Nylon, from Seoul Cultural Publishers.[52]
Others
In April 2018, Kakao M and its parent company formed the CSR venture Kakao Impact Foundation.[53]
Subsidiaries
, the following companies were the subsidiaries of Kakao M:[54]
- Antenna Entertainment (since 2021)
- Awesome ENT (since 2019)
- BH Entertainment (since 2018)
- Bluedot Entertainment (since 2021)
- E&T Story Entertainment (since 2019)
- EDAM Entertainment (since 2020)
- Flex M (since 2020)[55] [56]
- GRAYGO (since 2017)
- Maison de Baja (since 2019)[57]
- High Up Entertainment (since 2021)
- IST Entertainment (since 2012)
- J-Wide Company (since 2018)
- Management SOOP (since 2018)
- Mega Monster (since 2017)
- Modhaus (since 2021)
- Moonlight Film (since 2019)[58] [59]
- MTN Entertainment (since 2020)
- Ready Entertainment (since 2018)
- Sanai Pictures (since 2019)
- Starship Entertainment[60] (since 2013)
- VAST Entertainment & Media (since 2015)
Locations
- Jungseok Building, Teheran-ro 103-gil 17, Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
- Star Hill Building, Bongeunsa-ro 151, Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
- 12/F Hibro Building, Teheran-ro 503, Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
- 20/F Sangam DMC Digital Cube, 34 Sangamsan-ro, Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul
Awards
See also
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: New Kakao M CEO to challenge Netflix, CJ ENM in original content. The Korea Times. Baek. Byung-yeul. January 2, 2019. February 7, 2021. May 9, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210509073111/http://m.koreatimes.co.kr/pages/article.asp?newsIdx=261355. live.
- Web site: Kakao M names new CEO, adds Lee Byung-hun, Gong Yoo under management. Pulse News. Park. Chang-young. Choi. Mira. January 2, 2019. February 7, 2021. May 9, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210509073113/https://m.pulsenews.co.kr/view.php?year=2019&no=3027. live.
- Web site: Kakao Corporation Internal Audit Report. PwC. Kakao. February 7, 2021. November 4, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201104171750/https://t1.kakaocdn.net/kakaocorp/operating/ir/audit-report/3342.pdf. live.
- Web site: Loen Entertainment on the Forbes Asia 200 Best Under A Billion List. Forbes Asia. May 14, 2015. May 18, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150518092810/http://www.forbes.com/companies/loen-entertainment/. live.
- Web site: Affinity Equity Partners hit the jackpot with Kakao-Loen deal. ko:어피니티에쿼티파트너스, 카카오로엔 대박. Affinity Equity Partners hit the jackpot with Kakao-Loen deal. Mail Economic Daily. Naver. Han. Woo-ram. January 13, 2016. May 1, 2021. ko. September 11, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220911100540/https://n.news.naver.com/article/009/0003663386?sid=004. live.
- Web site: http://biz.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2016/01/11/2016011101209.html. ko:카카오, '멜론' 로엔엔터테인먼트 1.8조에 인수…종합 모바일 콘텐츠 플랫폼 서비스 나선다. Kakao acquires "MelOn" company Loen Entertainment for 1.8 billion dollars... sets out an entertainment platform for comprehensive mobile content services. January 13, 2016. The Chosun Ilbo. January 13, 2016. Kim, Min-soo. ko. January 18, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160118083046/http://biz.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2016/01/11/2016011101209.html. live.
- Web site: Kakao to buy South Korea's top music streaming operator for $1.6 billion. January 12, 2016. Reuters. Thomson Reuters Corp.. January 13, 2016. Lee, Se-young. January 13, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160113174718/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-kakao-m-a-loen-ent-idUSKCN0UP01620160112. live.
- News: http://gaonchart.co.kr/main/section/article/view.gaon?idx=10678&sgenre=opinion. ko:2015년 음악시장 결산. 2015 Music Market Closing Review. Kim, Jin-woo. December 11, 2015. Gaon Music Chart. Korea Music Content Industry Association. ko. March 18, 2016. March 23, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160323234326/http://gaonchart.co.kr/main/section/article/view.gaon?idx=10678&sgenre=opinion. live.
- Web site: http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=200505271812191&code=920401. ko:SKT, 국내최대 서울음반 인수. Seoul Records, SKT's largest acquisition. Kyunghyang Shinmun. Moon. Joo-young. May 27, 2005. August 25, 2010. March 10, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120310203943/http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=200505271812191&code=920401. live. ko.
- Web site: Kakao Entertainment: 합병 보고의 공고. Kakao Entertainment. 2023-03-12. 2023-03-12. ko. 2021-03-05. https://web.archive.org/web/20210305003253/https://kakaoent.com/announcement.html. live.
- Web site: Kakao Entertainment to merge Tapas & Radish to solidify the global content provider position. Korea Tech Desk. Dave. Aditi. 2022-05-20. 2022-08-29. en-US. August 29, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220829101929/https://www.koreatechdesk.com/kakao-entertainment-to-merge-tapas-radish-to-solidify-the-global-content-provider-position/. live.
- Web site: http://www.ybm.co.kr/sisa/photo.aspx?seq=14&Page=1. ko:1978 - Founding of "Seoul Records". YBM Group. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131228214818/http://www.ybm.co.kr/sisa/photo.aspx?seq=14&Page=1. December 28, 2013. ko.
- Korean Telco Takes Control Of Seoul Records. May 27, 2005. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. August 16, 2013. July 4, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140704194506/http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1411719/korean-telco-takes-control-of-seoul-records. live.
- Web site: http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=651823&mobile&categoryId=2058. ko:(주)로엔엔터테인먼트 (LOEN Entertainment, Inc.). Naver. Naver Corporation. August 25, 2012. November 3, 2012. May 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210520050332/https://terms.naver.com/entry.naver?docId=651823&mobile=&cid=43167&categoryId=43167. live.
- News: http://biz.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/05/13/2013051301997.html. ko:로엔 vs KT뮤직... 음원株 '지각변동'. LOEN versus KT Music... 'Music cataclysm'. ChosunBiz. Chosun Ilbo. Park. Won-ik. May 13, 2013. November 13, 2013. ko. November 13, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131113050630/http://biz.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/05/13/2013051301997.html. live.
- News: Video Subtitling Site Viki Puts K-Pop Content in Spotlight. May 30, 2012. The Chosun Ilbo. May 25, 2012. May 28, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120528122139/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2012/05/25/2012052500494.html. live.
- Web site: LOEN Tree Summer Story. Hanteo. May 1, 2021. July 26, 2013. https://archive.today/20130726025849/http://hanteo.com/search/nAlbum_info2.asp?mcode=001207683. live.
- News: http://www.thebell.co.kr/front/free/contents/news/article_view.asp?key=201311070100009740000585. ko:어피니티, 리얼네트웍스 보유 로엔엔터 지분 인수. Affinity acquires a stake in Loen Entertainment owned by Real Networks. The Bell. Lee, Jae-young. November 17, 2013. January 6, 2015. ko. January 5, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150105190822/http://www.thebell.co.kr/front/free/contents/news/article_view.asp?key=201311070100009740000585. live.
- News: Home of IU, LOEN Entertainment Aiming to Become A Multi-label Organization. Kpop Starz. September 24, 2013. May 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210520050336/https://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?action=like&app_id=322956627818433&channel=https%3A%2F%2Fstaticxx.facebook.com%2Fx%2Fconnect%2Fxd_arbiter%2F%3Fversion%3D46%23cb%3Df2c11952f212a1c%26domain%3Duk.kpopstarz.com%26origin%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fuk.kpopstarz.com%252Ff679627b06627%26relation%3Dparent.parent&container_width=0&font=arial&height=25&href=http%3A%2F%2Fuk.kpopstarz.com%2Farticles%2F270%2F20130924%2Fhome-iu-loen-entertainment-aiming-become-multi-label-organization.htm&layout=button_count&locale=en_US&sdk=joey&send=false&share=false&show_faces=false&width=90. live.
- News: Loen acquires large stake in Starship. Lee. Sun-min. December 19, 2013. Korea JoongAng Daily. February 2, 2021. December 16, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141216091352/http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/Article.aspx?aid=2982315. live.
- Web site: Loen Entertainment To Create New Drama Production Company With Studio Dragon. Kim, U.. Soompi. Viki Inc.. May 10, 2017. June 4, 2017. May 16, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170516154354/https://www.soompi.com/2017/05/10/loen-entertainment-create-new-drama-production-company-studio-dragon/. live.
- Web site: 카카오, '로엔' 주축 자체 제작 동영상 강화. Digital Times. Jin. Hyun-jin. August 24, 2017. May 1, 2021. ko. August 27, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170827045031/http://www.dt.co.kr/contents.html?article_no=2017082502101231043001. live.
- News: 배우 김소현, 로엔과 손잡고 독립 레이블 설립. December 26, 2017. Maeil Business Newspaper. ko. May 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210520050334/https://www.mk.co.kr/news/culture/view/2017/12/851779/. live.
- Web site: 로엔엔터테인먼트 사명 '카카오M'으로 변경. The Hankyoreh. Naver. Kim. Jae-seop. March 23, 2018. May 1, 2021. ko. May 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210520050403/https://n.news.naver.com/mnews/article/028/0002403489?sid=105. live.
- News: https://www.ekn.kr/web/view.php?key=332761. ko:로엔, 카카오엠으로 사명 변경 예정. Loen to change company name to Kakao M. Energy Economy. Lee. Ah-kyung. December 20, 2017. May 1, 2021. ko. September 11, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220911104159/https://www.ekn.kr/web/view.php?key=332761. live.
- News: (주)로엔엔터테인먼트 수시공시의무관련사항(공정공시). Maeil Business Newspaper. December 20, 2017. ko. December 26, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171226131402/http://vip.mk.co.kr/news/view/21/28/615797.html. live.
- News: 로엔엔터테인먼트 신임 대표에 이제욱. February 23, 2018. Yonhap. Hong. Ji-in. May 1, 2021. ko. November 8, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181108073645/http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/bulletin/2018/02/23/0200000000AKR20180223051200033.HTML. live.
- Web site: Daly . Rhian . Spotify confirm hundreds of K-pop releases removed from platform globally . NME . February 28, 2021 . May 1, 2021 . May 10, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210510144324/https://www.nme.com/news/music/hundreds-k-pop-releases-removed-spotify-worldwide-2890528 . live .
- Web site: Stassen. Murray. Spotify reinstates K-Pop tracks from Kakao Entertainment as companies reach global licensing deal. March 11, 2021. Music Business Worldwide. March 11, 2021. March 11, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210311135932/https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/spotify-reinstates-k-pop-tracks-from-kakao-entertainment-as-companies-reach-global-licensing-deal/. live.
- Web site: Jo. Ah-ra. 2021-03-04. 카카오페이지, 웹소설 스타트업에 300억 배팅, 이유는? - 머니투데이. 2021-02-16. The Korea Economic Daily. ko. March 9, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210309213641/https://www.hankyung.com/it/article/202103048042g. live.
- News: Loen, KT Music fined for music source price-fixing. October 9, 2016. The Korea Times. October 12, 2016. Yoon, Sung-won. October 12, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161012075933/http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2016/10/123_215715.html. live.
- News: '저작권료 182억 꿀꺽' 전 멜론 관계자 3명 재판행. September 26, 2019. . Jeong. Rae-won. September 27, 2019. ko. March 1, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210301041513/https://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=101&oid=001&aid=0011104386. live.
- Web site: http://news.nate.com/view/20130709n20424. ko:씨제스 "로엔, 준수 홍보 파기는 갑의 횡포"- 로엔 "긴급회의 중". Yonhap News Agency. Nate. Oh. Dae-Sung. July 9, 2013. ko. May 9, 2016. May 10, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210510150646/https://news.nate.com/view/20130709n20424. live.
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