Shortbox: Sponsored Sketches Outpaced Non-Sponsored Episodes in the Last 30 Days
Key Takeaways
- · 5월 8일 코웨이 광고 영상 갈비찜 잡채 보쌈 월남쌈 파스타가 294만 뷰, 5월 1일 삼성자산운용 광고 결혼식 12시간 전이 296만 뷰를 기록했습니다.
- · 최근 30일 본편 단위 광고 3편 평균(2.95M)이 비광고 1편 평균(2.08M)을 1.42배 앞섰지만 표본이 작아 단정은 어렵습니다.
- · 365일 평균은 광고가 비광고의 83% — 격차 17%로 다른 sketch 채널 30~70% 격차보다 좁습니다.
- · 12개월 24개 브랜드 협업에 코웨이·삼성자산운용·보험개발원 같은 보수적 광고주까지 포함돼 분포가 넓어졌습니다.
- · 한국경제 5월 13일 보도는 광고주의 sketch 통합 광고 검토가 늘어남을 가리키며, 다음 분기 메타코미디 다른 팀과 신생 sketch 채널의 시도가 늘어날 가능성이 있습니다.
On May 8, Shortbox uploaded 'Galbi-jjim Japchae Bossam Wolnamssam Pasta,' which passed 2.94 million views. The video carries a Coway sponsorship tag. A week earlier, on May 1, 'Wedding 12 Hours Before' hit 2.96 million views, and Korea Economic Daily on May 13 cited it as a PPL case for Samsung Asset Management. Sponsored videos usually lag organic content. On Shortbox, the gap is narrow — and in May, it briefly flipped.
On May 8, Coway Galbi-jjim Crossed 2.94 Million Views — As a Sponsored Episode
'Galbi-jjim Japchae Bossam Wolnamssam Pasta' is a full-length sketch uploaded on May 8. Built around a family gathering, the sketch threads dehumidifier dialogue into the scene, with Coway listed in the description and info card. 'Wedding 12 Hours Before,' uploaded May 1, weaves Samsung KODEX ETF exposure into the sketch and reached 2.96 million views. Both are tagged as sponsored, but the comments repeat the same line — viewers say they did not notice it was an ad. Korea Economic Daily's May 13 piece, 'From Memes to PPL in a Historic Bull Market,' noted that Samsung Asset Management exposed the brand through PPL on the 3.9-million-subscriber Shortbox channel.
In the Past Five Weeks, Sponsored Averages Led — But the Sample Is 3 vs 1
Within the same 30-day window, Shortbox uploaded three full-length sponsored episodes and one non-sponsored full-length. The three sponsored episodes averaged 2.94 million views; the single non-sponsored full-length averaged 2.08 million. The ratio comes out to 1.42x. The sample is small. Still, the fact that 'Galbi-jjim,' 'Wedding 12 Hours Before,' and the April 24 'When Does Your Shift End?' all landed near 2.9 million views is worth noting. The analysis is limited to full-length sketches. Shortbox uploaded 26 shorts in the same period, but most are clips drawn from the full-length episodes, so they were excluded from the standalone comparison.
숏박스 본편 단위 광고 vs 비광고 평균 조회수 (기간별, 만 회)
* Source: Dhesy
Two Interviews Frame the Selection Criteria in the Same Direction
On the October 25, 2025 episode of JTBC 'Knowing Bros,' Kim Wonhoon revealed the channel monthly net income at around 40 million won. In the same appearance, he explained that YouTube can run ads only on videos over eight minutes, and Shortbox does not have many of those, so PPL takes a larger share. Eom Ji-yoon added that the channel belongs to Kim Wonhoon and Cho Jin-se, and that she takes a split only on episodes she appears in.
The selection criteria appear in Kim June 2022 interview with Dong-A Ilbo. When two ads are on the table, he said, even at a lower fee he picks the one Shortbox can spin into something funny — because he does not want subscribers to say the channel does ads and is no longer fun. The two interviews, three years apart, frame the same rule: comedy fit before fee.
Over 365 Days, Sponsored Episodes Average 83% of Non-Sponsored — A 17% Gap
The 1.42x of the past five weeks is a short-window outlier. Across longer windows, sponsored full-lengths average slightly below non-sponsored. The past 90 days: 7 sponsored at 3.40 million versus 6 non-sponsored at 3.92 million, a 0.87x ratio. 180 days: 0.77x. 365 days: 0.83x. The gap stays between 17 and 23 percent. Other sketch and entertainment channels typically see 30 to 70 percent drop-offs on sponsored episodes. Shortbox monetization model is not sponsored outperforms organic. It is sponsored stays near organic. That stability is what brings advertisers back.
24 Brand Partners Over 12 Months — Including Conservative Categories
Over the past 12 months, Shortbox worked with 24 brands. Excluding 3 episodes for Rejuran Cosmetic, 2 for Samsung Asset Management, and 2 for HiteJinro, every other brand appears once. The list includes Coway, 7-Eleven, Karrot, Topten, Samsonite, Asus, T-money, Dorco, Kellogg, Inno.N, Baemin and the Korea Insurance Development Institute. Coway sells home appliances. The Korea Insurance Development Institute is quasi-public. Samsung Asset Management is a financial firm. Conservative advertisers usually avoid comedy-channel PPL — yet more than half of these 24 brands sit in categories far from comedy. Shortbox win in the Branded category at S.M.C. Group Creator Content Awards 2023 — for fusing creator identity with brand imagery — is one external signal of the trust advertisers extend.
The Sketch-Integrated Sponsor Model Presupposes the Right to Decline
For another sketch channel to reproduce the result, what is required is a position from which the team can decline an ad. Kim Wonhoon can pick a lower-fee ad because there are enough offers, and there are enough offers because of the Meta Comedy affiliation and assets like the 'Long-Term Relationship' IP. From an advertiser perspective, sketch-integrated ads are appealing — but not every sketch channel works the same way. Offer a new sketch team the same fees, and the right to decline weakens; once that weakens, the selection rule wavers. The trend Korea Economic Daily flagged on May 13 is that advertiser interest is rising. Next quarter, other sketch teams under Meta Comedy and emerging sketch channels are likely to try the same model. The test is whether sponsored-to-non-sponsored gaps land inside Shortbox 17 to 23 percent range.
Analysis Method
Based on collaboration data from Dhesy 4,929 brands and 7,879 creators. We separated Shortbox (UC1B6SalAoiJD7eHfMUA9QrA) full-length sketches from sponsored-tagged episodes and compared view averages. Analysis window: 2025-05-21 to 2026-05-21 (12 months). Shorts were excluded because most are clip edits derived from the full-length sketches.
Data source: Dhesy External sources: Korea Economic Daily 'From Memes to PPL in a Historic Bull Market' (2026-05-13); JTBC 'Knowing Bros' (broadcast 2025-10-25); Dong-A Ilbo 'Interview with Shortbox and Eom Ji-yoon on the Long-Term Relationship series' (2022-06-26) Last updated: 2026-05-21