Girls Planet 999: The Girls Saga[b] (simply referred to as Girls Planet 999) was a South Korean reality competition show created by Mnet. It premiered on August 6, 2021 and was originally broadcast every Friday at 8:20 PM KST for the first eleven episodes until its finale on October 22, which was broadcast live at 8 PM KST. It was aired on the Mnet channel, IQIYI, AbemaTV, tvN Asia or YouTube depending on the viewer's region. A production by Mnet's parent company CJ E&M and its subsidiary Studio Take One, as well as in collaboration with game developer and publisher NCSoft, the aim of the competition was to debut a new 9-member K-pop girl group consisting of trainees and idols from China,[c] Japan, and South Korea. Auditions for the competition were held from January to February 2021. Out of 13,000 applicants, 99 final contestants were selected. These 99 contestants were split equally into three groups; the K-Group, C-Group and the J-Group. In the finale on October 22, 2021, which was broadcast live, the show announced the final 9 members who would debut as Kep1er. A second season named Boys Planet 2022, is expected to premiere in 2022 featuring male trainees.