SK Telecom (NYSE: SKM, hereinafter referred to as “SKT”) today announced that its mobile app store One Store has successfully attracted investments from two global companies, Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners (hereinafter referred to as “DTCP”).

The investment comes as an extension of strategic business partnerships SKT formed with Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom in areas including 5G, cloud and artificial intelligence (AI).

Having witnessed the strong growth of One Store, the second largest app store in Korea well known for its open and creator-friendly approach, Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom decided to further strengthen their cooperation with SKT.

In the mid-to long-term, SKT and One Store will work with Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom to nurture the gaming industry, collaborate in cloud, and expand One Store’s platform to a global scale.

SKT and Microsoft will expand their current partnership in 5G-based cloud gaming to create new opportunities for Korean game content and creators, and innovate gamers’ experiences through an enriched ecosystem. The two companies have been delivering a differentiated mobile gaming experience to Korean gamers through Xbox cloud gaming technology and Microsoft Azure for super-fast speed and ultra-low latency gaming experiences on mobile devices.

SKT and Deutsche Telekom will work to create new opportunities for One Store in the global mobile game market by leveraging Deutsche Telekom’s presence in Europe. The two companies also expect One Store to also serve as a bridge for global game companies to access the European market.

Furthermore, SKT expects that One Store will also be able to strengthen its competitiveness in the content business including web novels and webtoons (mobile and digital comics).

One Store recently acquired Rok Media, a publishing company for genre fiction, and established a content studio joint venture with Yes24 to expand into diverse businesses.

At present, One Store is accelerating the pace for its initial public offering (IPO) as it continues to show strong business performance – e.g. turning into net income surplus, achieving revenue growth for 11 consecutive quarters, etc. – and attracts overseas investments. One Store has received a total of USD 15 million (approximately KRW 16.8 billion) in investment from Microsoft and DTCP.

According to mobile big data platform IGAWorks, One Store’s revenue growth rate for the first quarter of 2021 was 35.2% higher than that of the same period of last year and about 4.5 times higher than those of other global app markets.

“At Microsoft, we believe in delighting customers by empowering creators,” said Sarah Bond, Corporate Vice President, Game Creator Experience and Ecosystem. “We’re thrilled to help SKT One Store execute on their expansive vision of a more open store on Android mobile. Together, we will open up gaming to more creators and players around the world.”

“We are excited to invest in One Store and become part of this very successful growth journey,” said Vicente Vento, co-founder and CEO of DTCP. “Partnering with SKT, we look forward to supporting One Store expanding internationally.”

“The equity investments from Microsoft and DTCP will help strengthen the competitiveness of One Store and create a momentum for ICT ecosystem innovation,” said Ha Hyung-il, Vice President and Head of Corporate Center 2 of SKT. “We will work closely with Microsoft and Deutsche Telekom to generate tangible results.”

“One Store has now become Korea’s representative app market owned by telecommunication companies and IT firms from both home and abroad,” said Lee Jae-hwan, CEO of One Store. “Based on these investments, we will make redoubled efforts to build a sound app market ecosystem in Korea, while expanding our presence into the global market.”