Korea’s CJ ENM hires Fox Corp exec to lead global expansion strategy

Wolf Like Me

South Korea’s CJ ENM has landed former Fox Corporation exec Steve W. Chung to work across its global expansion.

Chung takes the newly created position of global chief growth officer at CJ ENM, effective immediately, and is tasked with accelerating expansion around the world from his LA base.

Steve W. Chung

He was previously chief growth officer at Fox, and before that founded tech firm Frankly, having also worked as a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley and executive producer in China.

The Seoul-based media giant has been reshuffling its global operations recently. It sold Nordic distributor Eccho Rights this summer following three years of ownership and completed its $785m deal to acquire a majority stake in Endeavor Content in 2021, handing it shows such as Nicole Kidman’s Roar for Apple TV+ and Wolf Like Me for Peacock.

CJ ENM has dabbled in US firms for decades, with investments in Skydance Media and DreamWorks, but its latest push suggests a more concrete strategy shift. The company is also rolling out its OTT platform, TVING, and last summer said it would invest more than ₩5tn ($4.5bn) in content creation over the next five years to fuel global growth.

Kang Ho-sung, CEO of CJ ENM, said: “We are at a time where our company is experiencing exponential growth and seeking opportunities to further expand our business globally. Based on his leadership in driving the growth of companies in Hollywood and Silicon Valley, we are thrilled to have Steve join our team as one of our key executives to position CJ ENM as a global entertainment company of the future.”

Chung added: “CJ ENM’s unrivaled position as Asia’s an entertainment powerhouse is a perfect launchpad for its next growth phase on the world stage. On the heels of its Oscar honors with Parasite and its majority acquisition of Endeavor Content, I am incredibly excited to work with the talented team to further drive and cement CJ ENM’s position as an indispensable and diverse voice in the media industry.”