KT Studio Genie moves 16 FAST channels to Amagi cloud

James Calloway

Amagi, a media-industry cloud company, said KT Studio Genie, the content subsidiary of KT Corporation, migrated 16 linear FAST channels to its cloud playout platform without disrupting viewers in an October 26, 2026 announcement.

The project covered KTSG’s domestic Korean lineup and international K-Movie and K-Drama feeds. KTSG moved the services from its previous playout vendor to Amagi in batches, completing a zero-downtime transition without disrupting viewers.

KTSG also launched Genie Shorts, a linear FAST channel built for 9:16 vertical Korean micro-dramas. The launch extended distribution to Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels and Plex across Korea, the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, while KTSG continued adding channels, platforms and territories.

Genie Shorts launched with 73 titles. Each episode runs 90 to 120 seconds, and the service went live on LG Channels Korea in August 2026. Expansion to Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and the UAE followed shortly afterward.

Samsung TV Plus in Europe is the next named distribution step. According to KTSG, the native 9:16 presentation keeps episodes at full video fidelity on standard 16:9 screens, while a separate vertical graphics layer carries channel branding and program information.

“Scalability was the deciding factor. Amagi’s single playout architecture means we incur no additional playout cost when we expand to a new platform. For a company like ours that needs to add platforms and territories quickly, that mattered most,” said Wonrak Choi, head of Channel Business Team at KT Studio Genie.

Choi also said: “In Q1 of this year, our FAST revenue already exceeded our full-year revenue for the previous year, with an operating profit, and that did a lot to build internal alignment behind this move.” The announcement did not disclose the revenue or operating-profit amounts.

Jay Ganesan, Amagi’s senior vice president for Asia-Pacific, framed the deal as a distribution model rather than a technical migration. “KT Studio Genie is not just migrating the channels to the cloud, it’s creating a new model for bringing Korean short-form stories to global audiences,” he said.

Ganesan added: “Genie Shorts combine a native vertical viewing experience with non-disruptive monetisation while Amagi’s scalable architecture enables KTSG to expand globally. We are proud to be KTSG’s partner in taking this innovation worldwide.” These are Amagi’s claims; the announcement provided no monetisation breakdown or commercial-contract value.

What does the Amagi migration change for KTSG?

For KTSG, the practical change is that it can add a platform without another playout charge, according to Choi. The measurable output is 16 migrated channels and a 73-title vertical service; the claimed financial benefits remain company statements without disclosed amounts.

KTSG is separately testing AI-powered subtitling and translation tools. A government-supported initiative would localize short-form dramas into Spanish ahead of a planned Latin American rollout, although the announcement named no sponsoring agency, technology provider, funding amount or launch date.

Genie Shorts and KTSG’s linear FAST channels are available now on Samsung TV Plus and LG Channels. KTSG also plans to continue expansion across North America, Europe, India and Latin America, while Amagi says continued rollout will extend both services across additional platforms and territories through the rest of 2026.

Amagi described the engagement as part of its continuing work with Asia-Pacific content owners scaling FAST and connected-TV distribution. The next concrete milestones are Samsung TV Plus in Europe, further platform and territory expansion through the rest of 2026, and Spanish-language localization ahead of Latin America, although the announcement set no dates for those extensions.