Korean startup Voithru that runs the content translation service JAMAKE, popular with Video Bloggers and YouTube influencers, has received a new investment of 6 billion won or $5.3 million. Existing investor Hashed led the Series B investment round, and TBT and KB Investment joined as new investors. Voithru had launched in April 2021 another service, ‘Panoplay,’ a content translation service for Korean webtoons, magazines, movies, education/lecture videos, and texts.
JAMAKE & PANOPLAY making life easier for content creators
Voithru founded JAMAKE to provide video translation services to Korean creators to globalize their local creations. Founded in 2018, ‘Jamake’ offers video subtitles, meta translation, and data analysis to YouTubers, influencers, V-Bloggers, etc. That helps them influence the audience that speaks a different language or lives in another continent. The company uses AI to deliver a high-quality translation with a Fraud Detection System and a Speech to Text voice detection system. The AI also reviews new words and checks grammar while translating.
The technology also recognizes and corrects a mistake, thereby improving the quality of the video. Jamake is concentrating on attracting B2B customers and domestic MCN companies, and broadcasting stations. Jamaica currently has partnerships with Sandbox, Dia TV, Leferi, and Treasure Hunter. Jamake occupies 80% of the market share and is at the forefront of the video translation industry in Korea.
Voithru’s Panoplay service is particularly relevant for K-Content developers such as webtoons and movies. Panoplay translates according to clients’ needs by reflecting different translation styles and specific glossaries depending on the content type. After the initial translation, it undergoes up to five inspections to ensure the best quality with a translation specialized for localization.
On the path to enhance service and expand worldwide
Voithru’s translation system has the form of a ‘protocol economy’. It is a model that solves many tasks in a new way other than pure translation, which has so far relied only on manual work. The ultimate concept is to capture a reasonable unit price and quality at the same time by allowing translators to focus purely on translation while automating the cumbersome and tedious additional work.
Voithru has been strengthening its market competitiveness by raising the internal translator screening criteria. Currently, the cumulative number of translators Voithru has are more than 1800 and over 150 partners. Voithru said that it plans to use this investment to preoccupy a more aggressive market and attract talent. Voithru has already entered the Japanese market, and it is preparing for market penetration into the Southeast Asia region.
Hashed’s partner Kim Seong-ho said, “Voithru has shown rapid growth over the past year, proving its potential not only in the YouTube market but also in various video markets such as webtoons, web novels and dramas. It is expected to show even faster growth with the improved service concept and technology.”
Lee Sang-heon, CEO of Voithru, said, “The content translation market is relatively less technologically innovative than the industrial translation market. We will innovate.”
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