South Korea’s leading free messenger service operator Daum Kakao said Wednesday it will launch a taxi service app by the first half of next year as it initiates a new platform of connecting online and offline businesses.

Daum Kakao signed a memorandum of understanding with the Seoul Taxi Association and Korea Smart Card Co. for the service that would link customers with the closest cab through a mobile app. The taxi association has some 255 Seoul-based cab operators as members, and Korea Smart Card is the country’s top transportation payment system provider.

“Daum Kakao has established important grounds for the operation of Kakao Taxi, and we plan to expand cooperation with other taxi operators throughout the country in the future,” the company said in its release.

It said there was no detailed plan yet on profit-sharing.

“The new service will generate profit. However, we have not yet decided on details, including who will pay commissions,” a Daum Kakao official said.

The company’s flagship messenger service Kakao Talk commands 37 million local users in the country of 50 million people.

Daum Kakao said it will first roll out an application for taxi drivers to secure enough number of cabs and later open the service to the public. Both apps will work on Android and iOS platforms.

“The service will become the starting point of the company’s new vision of ‘Connect Everything,’ which brings online and offline together,” Daum Kakao said.

The company was just created in October out of a merger between Kakao Corp. and portal service Daum Communications Corp. (Yonhap)