Yeah1 Group suddenly stops production of 2 popular reality TV shows

According to the company, this decision is to avoid content overload for the audience, while creating conditions to focus investment on other programs.

The news quickly attracted attention on social networks. Many viewers expressed regret, especially those who were looking forward to season 2 of "Anh trai vu ngan cong gai". However, many opinions said that the temporary suspension of production was reasonable, helping to improve the quality of the program instead of chasing quantity.

Great success with "Brother overcomes a thousand obstacles"

Yeah1 Group is the only unit that owns the copyright to produce the program "Anh trai vu ngan cong gai" in Vietnam, based on the original version "Call Me By Fire" of MangoTV (China). In the second half of 2024, this program made a strong impression, attracting a large audience and receiving sponsorship from many big brands.

According to Kantar Media Vietnam, "Anh trai vu ngan cong gai" is the entertainment program with the highest average viewership on VTV3 during prime time (8pm-11pm), from Monday to Sunday, in four major cities: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang and Can Tho.

In terms of ratings, the show maintained a stable rating of over 4.0 and topped almost all episodes, except for episodes 2, 8 and 10. Notably, episode 5 set a record with a rating of 7.43, topping the broadcast time slot on VTV3. On online platforms, the show continuously entered the YouTube trending list, attracting more than 15 billion views through related hashtags.

Not only successful on television, "Anh trai vu ngan cong gai" also caused a "fever" with concert nights.

The first concert in Ho Chi Minh City was a success, attracting 20,000 spectators and quickly sold out. Then, in December 2024, the second concert in Hung Yen continued to impress when it welcomed about 30,000 spectators, despite the cold weather. Tickets cost from 800,000 to 8,000,000 VND, but all were sold out after only 50 minutes of going on sale, with 150,000 people lining up to buy.

Moving into 2025, the next two concerts in Ho Chi Minh City continued to create a fever when all tickets were sold out after only 30 and 40 minutes. It is known that the concert was invested by Yeah1 Group and produced by 1Production Company. Techcombank is a co-investor of the event.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Phuong, Director of the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts, "Anh trai vu ngan cong thorn" is expected to earn 340 billion VND from advertising and media revenue.

Previously, in 2023, Yeah1 also successfully purchased the copyright of the Chinese program "Big Sister Riding the Wind and Breaking the Waves" and localized it into "Beautiful Sister Riding the Wind and Breaking the Waves", helping the company achieve a profit of 27 billion VND, 2.5 times higher than the same period last year.

Entering season 2, although not as popular as "Anh trai vu ngan cong thorn" 2024, "Sister dep da gio" 2024 also achieved certain success.

Yeah1 wins big like never before, reports highest profit in 6 years

For the first time, there has been such an explosive music program in Vietnam and the biggest beneficiary is the production unit. 2024 marks the strong growth of Yeah1 Group with business results far exceeding expectations.

According to the financial report for the fourth quarter of 2024, the company recorded net revenue of nearly 378 billion VND, 2.4 times higher than the same period last year. Cost of goods sold increased sharply by nearly 250%, causing gross profit to only 33 billion, down 44% compared to the same period, corresponding to a gross profit margin of less than 9%.

According to the financial report for the fourth quarter of 2024, the company recorded net revenue of nearly 378 billion VND.

However, Yeah1 had a breakthrough thanks to financial revenue reaching 78 billion VND, nearly 7 times higher than in the fourth quarter of 2023. After deducting expenses, the company's pre-tax profit reached 57 billion VND, nearly 3 times higher. In particular, after-tax profit increased by 400% over the same period, reaching 71 billion VND. Excluding the fluctuating profit in the fourth quarter of 2021 due to the sale of subsidiaries, this is the highest figure since the second quarter of 2018 - the period before the crisis due to the YouTube incident.

In 2024, Yeah1's net revenue will reach nearly VND 1,007 billion, 2.4 times higher than in 2023. This is also the highest level in the past 3 years.

Profit after tax for the whole year recorded nearly 127 billion VND, an increase of nearly 4.8 times and the second highest profit in the company's history, only after 2018.

Compared to the plan, Yeah1 has far exceeded its profit target for 2024, when the company set a revenue target of 800 to 1,000 billion VND, with profit fluctuating between 65 and 105 billion VND.

Yeah1's management explained that the sudden growth in the fourth quarter of 2024 came from business performance. The biggest contributors were multi-platform advertising, brand sponsorship, and popular entertainment programs and events. In particular, revenue from advertising and media consulting reached VND845 billion, a four-fold increase compared to 2023. Following were content copyright revenue (VND96 billion) and service and e-commerce revenue (VND65 billion).

In addition, profit from financial activities, mainly profit from divestment of subsidiaries, reached nearly VND 143 billion, 7.1 times higher than in 2023. These results reflect Yeah1's effective business strategy and efforts to diversify operations and optimize profits.

As of December 31, 2024, Yeah1's total assets reached nearly VND2,500 billion, up 34% compared to the beginning of the year. This expansion mainly came from the increase of one and a half times in short-term receivables to more than VND1,290 billion. In the debt structure, short-term debt accounted for the majority, with short-term loans reaching nearly VND538 billion, up 209% compared to the beginning of the year. Meanwhile, equity reached more than VND1,500 billion, with undistributed profit after tax recording nearly VND76 billion.

Along with positive business results, the remuneration of Ms. Ngo Thi Van Hanh, General Director of Yeah1, also increased significantly. In 2024, Ms. Hanh received a remuneration of 2.55 billion VND, an increase of 300 million VND compared to the previous year.

Mr. Che Doan Vien, Deputy General Director, receives 1.4 billion VND/year, an increase of about 338 million VND. In addition, Mr. Pham Minh Tien, who was appointed as Deputy General Director in May 2024, also has a salary of up to 750.5 million VND/year.

On the stock market, YEG shares increased by nearly 170% from early October to early December 2024, to VND22,640/share (adjusted price), before decreasing by 30-35%, closing on March 17 at VND14,700/share.

Temporarily stopping production despite huge profits, what is Yeah1 planning?

The news that Yeah1 will no longer produce the two hit shows has left many fans feeling regretful, and at the same time surprised the entertainment market, because "Anh trai vu ngan cong gai" in particular is a brand that brings in large revenue for the producer.

Sharing with the press, Yeah1 General Director, Ms. Ngo Van Hanh, said: "Not continuing does not mean stopping. We need a break to best prepare for the next seasons, instead of continuing to produce but not achieving the expected results."

Instead of continuing the two programs above, Yeah1 will focus on developing "Haha Family", a program that explores local culture, people and agricultural products through artist journeys. The program not only contributes to promoting tourism but also aims to support the consumption of agricultural products on digital platforms.

In addition, Yeah1 also launched "All-round Rookie", a project to search for and train the next generation of artists for the Vietnamese entertainment industry. According to a report from YouNet Media, although it has not officially aired, the program has already entered the top 3 most discussed topics on social networks.

The application period for Tan Binh Toan Nang lasts for more than 1 month.

To realize these projects, Yeah1 has signed strategic cooperation agreements with three major partners. MangoTV will provide the copyright to produce entertainment programs, opening up opportunities to localize successful formats. 153/Joombas Music Group, led by famous music producer Hyuk Shin, will take on the role of music training and development, helping to improve the quality of artists. Meanwhile, Sony Music Group will be in charge of distributing and releasing music products, bringing Yeah1's products to the international market.

This decision is considered a strategic move, helping Yeah1 diversify content and create novelty in the Vietnamese entertainment market.

Raising capital for development strategy

In order to raise capital for its development strategy, in early February 2025, Yeah1 launched a share offering to existing shareholders. Specifically, the company has just completed the offering of more than 54.8 million shares to shareholders, thereby successfully raising VND548 billion and increasing its charter capital from VND1,370 billion to VND1,918 billion.

Of these, 51.87 million shares were distributed to 5,793 investors from February 3 to March 3, corresponding to a successful offering rate of nearly 95%. Of these, 5,741 domestic investors held 50.5 million shares, while 55 foreign investors owned more than 4.2 million shares.

The remaining shares, including 2.93 million shares that existing shareholders did not purchase and 1,037 odd shares, were distributed between March 7 and March 11, 2025 to three individual investors. Of which, Nguyen Thanh Tra purchased 1,238,590 shares, increasing his ownership ratio to 0.9% of charter capital. Dang Anh Phuong purchased 1.2 million shares, increasing his ownership ratio to 0.8% of charter capital. Nguyen Hai Khoi Khoa purchased 492,037 shares, increasing his ownership ratio to 0.3% of charter capital.

List of 3 investors distributed 2.9 million shares of Yeah1. Screenshot

After deducting expenses, the net proceeds from the offering reached nearly VND547.9 billion. Yeah1 plans to allocate the raised capital to important activities. Specifically, the company will use VND211 billion to pay for capital contributions to 1Production LLC, VND127 billion to repay loans to purchase shares of Yeah1 Edigital JSC, and VND100 billion to repay loans to purchase shares of Netlink Vietnam Technology Media JSC. In addition, VND63 billion will be used to pay off loans at VietinBank, while VND48 billion will be added to the capital source for regular business operations. The increase in charter capital will also help Yeah1 improve its financial capacity, consolidate business operations, and restructure debts.

In addition, Yeah1 has announced that it will finalize the list of shareholders attending the 2025 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders on March 21, 2025. The meeting is expected to be held online in April 2025. The meeting will include reviewing the performance reports of the Board of Directors, the Supervisory Board, the Financial Report, selecting an auditing unit and other important contents.