Produce 48 VietSub (Produce 48 with Vietnamese subtitles) is a reality survival show that aired on Mnet in 2018. The show is a large-scale project where "national producers" (viewers) "produce" a girl group through a voting system for their favorite contestants among 96 trainees. They also get to choose the group's concept, debut song, and group name. Produce 48 is a collaboration between the Produce 101 series and the AKB48 system.
Produced by AKATV (the same company behind Produce 101 Season 2), Produce 48 aired every Friday at 11:00 PM (KST) starting from June 15, 2018. The live finale was broadcasted at 8:00 PM (KST) on August 31, 2018. The group that debuted from the show is IZ*ONE.
Produce 48 brought together 96 trainees, 57 from South Korea and 39 members from the AKB48 Group in Japan. The viewers voted for their favorite trainees to form a Korean-Japanese girl group consisting of 12 members who would promote for 2 years and 6 months (30 months). The group would follow the AKB48 system of "idols you can meet and greet" and perform in their own theater. The group's debut album would be produced by renowned producer Akimoto Yasushi from AKB48 Group and Pledis Entertainment CEO Han Sung-soo. The winning members would also be able to pursue their own individual activities.
During the press conference on June 11, 2018, Produce 48 announced that only votes from Korean viewers would be counted from the moment the show aired. This decision was made to ensure fairness for the Korean trainees, as the popularity of Japanese contestants in their home country could potentially create an unfair advantage. The final group would consist of the top 12 contestants, regardless of their nationality, instead of the initial plan of having 6 Korean and 6 Japanese members. In the end, the winning group comprised of 9 Korean members and 3 Japanese members.