Netizens Raise Anger After HYBE Reveals New And Costly Changes To Weverse
Netizens have raised anger towards HYBE after changes to the global platform Weverse were announced.
When the platform was founded, it was seemingly assumed to only be for HYBE groups. Many groups joined the platform following TXT in June 2019 and BTS in July 2019. Since then, it has allowed fans to interact with idols, whether it’s through messages or live broadcasts.
While Weverse used to be an HYBE-only platform, after the closing of VLIVE, it has become a main platform for most artists from different companies.
Although fans had their grievances, such as the lack of subtitles, it became a centralized hub for K-Pop. Yet, it seems like there could be some huge and significant changes to the platform.
During the HYBE “Q1 2023 Earnings Report,” changes to Weverse were revealed to the public.
While the Weverse DM is something fans are aware of, and the “Weverse by Fans” seemed intriguing, the “Membership+” is what seemed to anger fans. Looking at the photo, it seems like a new fee will have to be paid to access certain features.
While some options seemed reasonable to be paid services, fans were able to freely enjoy options like subtitles, ad-free options, and access to an early instant replay.
When the new plans were released, netizens were unsurprisingly angry. Although some found it an excuse to make jokes, including the length of BTS V‘s broadcasts probably shorter than the ads…
Me waiting for the ad on weverse to finish only to find out taehyung already ended the live: pic.twitter.com/cLx9njdM4s
— father jungkook🍓⁷ (@0UTR0EG0) May 2, 2023
Yet, for most, it was something that netizens couldn’t comprehend. It angered them that HYBE seemingly wanted to profit from fans even more. While everyone would be impacted by the ads, international fans would be directly affected by having to pay for subtitles.
I usually wrote subtitles of Weverse Live. However, I don't think it's fan's job, it's function that company basically has to provide to fan. Hybe say that we can use only if we pay it. It's service that Koreans don't need. But this function is essential for i-ARMYs. pic.twitter.com/OaP3CEYojL
— star_jin (@nightstar1201) May 2, 2023
this is ridiculous wdym they’ll add weverse realtime subtitles BUT its a paid subscription??? WHATS THE PURPOSE
— krysten (@UNOFFlClALTXT) May 2, 2023
imagine it’s the first ot7 live in 2025 and you get hit with an ad in the middle of it. IM SORRY FUCK WEVERSE FOR THIS BUT IM BUYING IM SORRY YALL pic.twitter.com/YKqq9SGUgF
— keke⁷ SAW YOONGI (@stallseok) May 2, 2023
they're gonna launch weverse membership+ too lol so fan letters are cute as well as posts in artists' handwriting BUT PAYING FOR SUBTITLES ON WEVERSE LIVE????? pic.twitter.com/TeOKHWl3Jg
— 🌻 (@qtdkyeom) May 2, 2023
In particular, one netizen posted that it would go against HYBE’s ideology to have music being the bridge between language barriers.
the idea of real time weverse subtitles as a premium content is so backward thinking omf like what happened to hybe’s ideology of music being the element that bridges the barrier of language
— vlad (@scionyphen) May 2, 2023
While it was the perfect way for international netizens to understand what the idols say, many even pointed out that learning Korean would be easier and cheaper.
we start learning korean, itll be cheaper on the long run cause knowing hybe theyll add jelly’s to weverse live too where u need to pay to continue watching lmao
— krysten (@UNOFFlClALTXT) May 2, 2023
If that wasn’t enough, during the call, it was revealed that the executives at HYBE deliberately put “Dynamic pricing” for their concerts and artists, including TXT and BTS’s Suga. This is something that has been criticized as it means that ticket vendors can increase the prices of tickets depending on demand.
Hybe confirming that platinum pricing (dynamic pricing) was a deliberate choice (opt-in)
Answer from the CFO
🔗 https://t.co/yAwM0dndGk
Timestamp is in the screenshot pic.twitter.com/d7MstOcbku— BTS ⟭⟬ Merch⁷⟬⟭🔍⍤⃝🔎 (@BTSMerchUpdates) May 2, 2023
While it is only natural for HYBE to want to expand the platform, taking away basic features, especially subtitles, becomes a barrier for global fans who want to enjoy K-Pop, instead putting a price on the “privilege” to enjoy what Weverse (and before that VLIVE) had previously provided for free.
