NetEase Cloud Music has secured an exclusive deal with South Korean soundtrack powerhouse Most Contents, signing an agreement on September 5, 2025, that grants streaming rights to over 70 popular K-drama soundtracks for the Chinese market. This strategic partnership taps into Most Contents’ control of approximately 50% of South Korea’s drama music market, bringing beloved tracks from hit shows like “Young Lady and Gentleman,” “That Year, Us,” and “Boyhood” to Chinese listeners.
The deal includes notable songs such as V’s “Christmas Tree,” which made history as the first Korean drama OST to enter the Billboard Hot 100, and Lim Young-woong’s enduringly popular “Love Always Runs Away.”
NetEase’s acquisition strengthens its position against rival Tencent Music Entertainment in China’s competitive streaming landscape, where it currently boasts over 206 million monthly active users. This partnership comes as NCM reported 15.2% revenue growth in the first half of 2025, reaching RMB 2.47 billion.
This partnership represents the latest in NetEase’s aggressive expansion into Korean content. Earlier collaborations with major entertainment companies including RBW, Starship Entertainment, and Kakao Entertainment have already bolstered its K-pop offerings. The May 2025 deal with RBW enhanced access to popular acts like IVE, while the Starship partnership brought IVE’s latest album “IVE EMPATHY” to the platform with full copyright protection. The platform provides artists with comprehensive royalty structures similar to other major streaming services, ensuring fair compensation for Korean content creators. These partnerships have significantly improved NetEase’s catalog as listeners gain earlier access to exclusive releases from Korean artists.
Beyond simply streaming content, NetEase plans to develop additional projects around these soundtracks, including remake versions, concerts, and official merchandise. For artists featured in these soundtracks, the deal represents a valuable sync licensing opportunity that can provide substantial passive income. These initiatives aim to create new business models while fostering a deeper K-content consumption culture among Chinese audiences, particularly targeting Generation Z and millennial listeners who engage heavily with the platform’s recommendation system.
The Most Contents agreement reflects NetEase’s broader strategy of using exclusive Korean content as a key differentiation point in user acquisition and retention. By increasing accessibility to Korean drama soundtracks previously less available domestically, NetEase is positioning itself as the premier destination for K-drama enthusiasts in China while supporting the growing influence of Korean OSTs in the Chinese market.
