By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila Bulletin
Fans of JYJ welcomed the decision of the Korea Fair Trade Commission
(KFTC) to issue a corrective order against SM Entertainment and the Korean
Federation of Pop Culture and Art Industry (KFPCAI) for interfering in the boy
band's activities.
In a decision, the KFTC said SME and KFPCAI worked to impede JYJ's TV
appearances and activities as a singer after the three members of the boy band
sued SME in 2009 to annul their exclusive contracts with the entertainment
agency.
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| JYJ (Photo by www.newsen.com) |
The KFTC said when JYJ released their first album, "The
Beginning," in October 2010, SME and KFPCAI sent letters under the KFPCAI
name to 26 companies asking them not to allow JYJ to perform on TV programs and
distribute and carry the album.
These 26 companies were Korea's three major TV stations KBS, SBS and
MBC, six cable TV companies, 11 album distributors and five online music
download sites.
The KFTC ruling stemmed from a petition filed by JYJ fans in February
2011, asking the commission to investigate the interference of SME and KFPCAI
in JYJ's activities.
The petition was supported by about 86,000 fans from 118 countries. The
number of petitioners grew to about 180,000.
Besides the KFPCAI letter, SME also filed an injunction with a Korean
court in October 2010 to stop the release of "The Beginning," the
first English album of Junsu, Yoochun and Jaejoong, saying that the exclusive
contract case was still ongoing.
In October 2009, a Seoul court issued an injunction against SME that
prohibited the latter from interfering in JYJ's activities and contracts.
KFPCAI is the umbrella organization of 12 organizations including the
Korea Entertainment Producers Association (KEPA), which was organized by SME,
and Corea Drama Production Association (CODATV).
In the ruling, the KFTC ordered KPFCAI to advise the 26 companies about
its decision.
Last November, SME and JYJ came to an agreement to drop the lawsuits
they filed against each other.
From 2010 until now, JYJ have not been able to promote in any of the
music TV programs.
Fans are hoping that the KFTC ruling will pave way for JYJ to finally
appear on music TV programs "Music Bank," "Inkigayo,"
"Music Core" and "M Countdown" to perform.
KFTC said its ruling serves as a warning regarding unfair practices in
the entertainment industry.
JYJ and C-JeS Entertainment thanked the KFTC for ruling in their favor.
For its part, SME denied that it interfered with JYJ's activities and is
studying a legal response to the KFTC ruling.
Link to my original article on Manila
Bulletin online:
To contact the author, send email to sangchusan(at)gmail.com
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