ENTERTAINMENT
SM, angry at the FTC report on 'CBX'... "Slavery contract? No coercion at all."
On the 5th, SM announced its position in this regard. SM said, "We would like to express our position regarding the press release related to the report to the Fair Trade Commission announced by Byun Baek-hyun, Kim Jong-dae, and Kim Min-seok today (5th)." And it was clearly revealed that the intention of the artist who triggered this incident was an act aimed at denying the validity of the new exclusive contract."
They continued, "The exclusive contract period that the artist side intends to take issue with the Fair Trade Commission is a contract condition that the company has already recognized as legitimate by the Supreme Court in 2018."
In addition, "The Supreme Court judged that the period of our exclusive contract cannot be regarded as excessively long, as it requires full support and effort from the agency in the process of casting, training, and production of new artists, and in fact requires a lot of investment." he said.
He also emphasized that there was no coercion at the time of contract renewal with Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin. SM said, "EXO members, including the three artists, signed a new exclusive contract after sufficient consultation with us with the help of a lawyer from a large law firm, in a situation where the existing exclusive contract was not forced to renew at all ahead of the end of the contract. EXO member Our company reviewed and counter-proposals were made on the various conditions suggested by them, and during the last month of negotiations, we exchanged amendments with each other and discussed every detailed word.”
In addition, he said, “The existing exclusive contract and the new exclusive contract are separate,” and “the three artists voluntarily signed a new exclusive contract.”
Lastly, he added, "Even in a situation where the suspicion of involvement by a third party has not been resolved at all, we will make efforts to maintain EXO's activities, including the decision to provide copies of the settlement data to the three artists. "
Below is the full text of SM's position.
hello. This is SM Entertainment.
Today, we would like to express our position regarding the press release related to the report to the Fair Trade Commission announced by Baekhyun Byun, Jongdae Kim, and Minseok Kim.
Many of the artist press releases are not true. And it is clear that the intention of the artist who triggered this incident was an act aimed at denying the validity of the new exclusive contract.
◆ Exclusive contract period duly recognized by the Supreme Court
First of all, the exclusive contract period that the artist side will take issue with the Fair Trade Commission is a contract condition that we have already recognized as legitimate by the Supreme Court in 2018.
The Supreme Court judged that the period of our exclusive contract cannot be viewed as excessively long, as it requires full support and efforts from the agency in the process of casting, training, and producing new artists, and it is characterized by the fact that a lot of investment is actually spent.
In fact, no profit is generated during the artist's trainee period, but we are fully responsible for the large investment costs required during that period, and we settle the profits immediately upon the artist's debut without any reimbursement of costs.
While ignoring the above Supreme Court ruling, the artist side is arguing that the exclusive contract period is an issue or that it is a 'slave contract', which is not true.
◆ New exclusive contracts are signed voluntarily
EXO members, including three artists, signed new exclusive contracts after sufficient discussions with us with the help of a lawyer from a large law firm, in a situation where renewal of contracts was not enforced at all ahead of the expiration of the existing exclusive contracts. Our review and counter-proposals were made on the various conditions suggested by the EXO members, and during the last month of negotiations, we exchanged amendments with each other and discussed every detail, even the smallest words.
In addition, the conditions for automatic extension of the contract period according to the amount of albums released are also reflected after sufficiently mutual consultation. From the artist's point of view, the company can expect to release a certain number of albums, and from the company's point of view, album activities are expected accordingly. , This is a provision established to continue active entertainment activities based on mutual trust. And, of course, the number of albums was set at a reasonable level.
At the request of the EXO members, the amount of the down payment was adjusted, and it was agreed to pay it at the time of the new exclusive contract. Some of the EXO members have started their entertainment activities after receiving down payments under the new exclusive contracts after their existing exclusive contracts were terminated.
The fact that one of the current EXO members has yet to renew the contract and is still discussing with us proves that the contract was signed voluntarily.
◆ Relentless pressure attempts to deny the validity of the new exclusive contract
The existing exclusive contract and the new exclusive contract are separate. The three artists voluntarily signed new exclusive contracts.
However, after that, the artist side suddenly reversed their position and wanted to be able to deny the effect of the new exclusive contract. After requesting a renegotiation with the company, they repeatedly threatened to terminate the exclusive contract immediately, report it to the Fair Trade Commission, and disclose it to the media if a copy of the settlement data was not provided. The company has been conscientiously discussing this, but when we asked for confirmation of the involvement of a third force, they were making claims that were different from the facts, referring to 'slave contracts'.
◆ Efforts to maintain EXO activities
Even in a situation where the suspicion of third party involvement has not been resolved at all, we will make efforts to maintain EXO activities, such as the decision to provide copies of settlement data to three artists.
It is very regrettable that the artist reported to the Fair Trade Commission based on false or distorted facts without reviewing the recent Supreme Court ruling. Regarding the case reported to the Fair Trade Commission, we would like to resolutely and respectfully explain the objective facts and our clear position. However, we will actively respond to unreasonable attempts to disrupt legally concluded contracts or distort objective facts, even for our stable artists and our precious fans who unwaveringly support us.
thank you
Reporter Yoon Jun-ho, Ten Asia delo410@tenasia.co.kr
