LINE Overview

  • Year Founded
  • 2000

Year Founded

  • Status
  • Private

  • Employees
  • 8,992

Employees

  • Latest Deal Type
  • M&A
  • (Cancelled)

  • Financing Rounds
  • 4

  • Investments
  • 38

LINE General Information

Description

Developer of an instant messaging application intended to develop and operate a wide range of mobile-first services. The company software includes communication, content, entertainment and advertising, as well as new businesses in fintech, artificial intelligence and other domains, enabling users to connect people, information, services and everything else.

Contact Information

Website
www.linecorp.com
Formerly Known As
NHN Japan Corporation
Ownership Status
Privately Held (backing)
Financing Status
Corporate Backed or Acquired
Corporate Office
  • 23rd Floor Yotsuya Tower
  • 1-6-1 Yotsuya, Shinjuku-ku
  • Tokyo, 160-0004
  • Japan
Primary Industry
Communication Software
Vertical(s)
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, TMT, Mobile
Corporate Office
  • 23rd Floor Yotsuya Tower
  • 1-6-1 Yotsuya, Shinjuku-ku
  • Tokyo, 160-0004
  • Japan

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LINE Valuation & Funding

Deal Type Date Amount Valuation/
EBITDA		 Post-Val Status Debt

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LINE Comparisons

Description
Primary
Industry
HQ Location
Employees
Total Raised
Post Valuation
Last
Financing
Details
Developer of an instant messaging application intended to develop and operate a wide range of mobile-first services. The
Communication Software
Tokyo, Japan
8,992 As of 2019

Pfaffikon, Switzerland
 

San Francisco, CA
 
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LINE Competitors (28)

One of LINE’s 28 competitors is Threema, a Private Equity-Backed company based in Pfaffikon, Switzerland.

Company Name Financing Status Location Employees Total Raised Last Financing Date/Type Last Financing Amount
Threema Private Equity-Backed Pfaffikon, Switzerland
Discord Venture Capital-Backed San Francisco, CA
WeChat Corporation Shenzhen, China
Olark Formerly Accelerator/Incubator backed Wilmington, DE
Imo Formerly VC-backed Palo Alto, CA
You’re viewing 5 of 28 competitors. Get the full list »

LINE Patents

  • 85

    Total Documents Applications and Grants

  • Total Patents Families

  • 66

    Granted

  • 11

    Pending

  • Expiring in next 12 mo

LINE Recent Patent Activity

Publication ID Patent Title Status First Filing Date Technology (CPC) Citations
JP-6771117-B1 Information providing server, information providing method, and program Active 07-Feb-2020
JP-2021125110-A Information providing server, information providing method, and program Active 07-Feb-2020
JP-6692982-B1 Numbered ticket issuing server, numbered ticket issuing method, and program Active 31-Oct-2019
JP-2021071977-A Numbered ticket issuing server, numbered ticket issuing method, and program Active 31-Oct-2019
JP-2021068449-A Network server and method for providing web page for user terminal Active 24-Oct-2019 G06Q30/0251
To view LINE’s complete patent history, request access »

LINE Signals

Growth Rate

Weekly
Growth
Weekly Growth

Size Multiple

Median
Size Multiple

Key Data Points

Similarweb Unique Visitors

Majestic Referring Domains

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LINE Investors

Investor Name Investor Type Holding Investor Since Participating Rounds Contact Info

This information is available in the PitchBook Platform. To explore LINE‘s full profile, request access.

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LINE Investments & Acquisitions (38)

LINE’s most recent deal was a Early Stage VC with Carnival Group for . The deal was made on 29-Nov-2023.

Company Name Deal Date Deal Type Deal Size Industry Lead Partner
Carnival Group 29-Nov-2023 Early Stage VC Business/Productivity Software
Line Music 06-Oct-2022 Secondary Transaction - Private Movies, Music and Entertainment
Line Man 26-Sep-2022 Later Stage VC Other Services (B2C Non-Financial)
theAsianparent 22-Mar-2022 Later Stage VC Information Services (B2C)
Carnival Group 17-Oct-2021 Seed Round Business/Productivity Software
You’re viewing 5 of 38 investments and acquisitions. Get the full list »

LINE Exits (7)

LINE’s most recent exit was on 20-Mar-2019 from AnyMind Group. The exit was categorized as with 4 buyers.

Company Name Exit Date Exit Type Exit Size Status Buyers
AnyMind Group 20-Mar-2019 Completed
  • 4 buyers
Mobike 20-Dec-2017 Completed
  • 3 buyers
Snow (Multimedia and Design Software) 24-Feb-2017 Completed
Snow (Multimedia and Design Software) 29-Sep-2016 Completed
WebPay 11-Feb-2015 Merger/Acquisition Completed
You’re viewing 5 of 7 exits. Get the full list »

LINE Affiliates

Subsidiaries (7)

Name Industry Location Year Founded
Line Taxi Taipei City, Taiwan 2017
Line Ventures Tokyo, Japan 2014
SellSuki Bangkok, Thailand 2013
Line Games Seoul, South Korea 2012
LINE Studio Tokyo, Japan 2005
You’re viewing 5 of 7 affiliates. Get the full list.  »

LINE FAQs

  • When was LINE founded?

    LINE was founded in 2000.

  • Where is LINE headquartered?

    LINE is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

  • What is the size of LINE?

    LINE has 8,992 total employees.

  • What industry is LINE in?

    LINE’s primary industry is Communication Software.

  • Is LINE a private or public company?

    LINE is a Private company.

  • What is LINE’s current revenue?

    The current revenue for LINE is .

  • How much funding has LINE raised over time?

    LINE has raised $722M.

  • Who are LINE’s investors?

    Naver has invested in LINE.

  • Who are LINE’s competitors?

    Threema, Discord, WeChat, Olark, and Imo are some of the 28 competitors of LINE.

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