HYBE HIRES 4 US LAW FIRMS TO HELP ON DEFAMATION CASES (Patreon)

https://m.entertain.naver.com/article/003/0012607900

UPDATE #3 TLDR:

• Numerous 'CYBER WRECKER' channels, known for ridiculing HYBE artists and posting slanderous videos, have been sued.

• HYBE has initiated legal proceedings against four known social media channels: '7th Grade of Middle School,' 'Guilty Archive,' 'Short Deputy Manager,' and 'Issue Feed.'

• Legal actions target channels on overseas platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube, which were previously challenging to sue.

• Issue Feed, a YouTube channel with 300,000 subscribers, went private following a lawsuit announcement from Source Music, managing LE SSERAFIM.

• The YouTube channel ‘Short Deputy Director’ is also facing legal action and has promised to apologize and delete problematic videos.

• HYBE applied to a federal court in California to disclose the identity of operators of defamatory channels targeting their artists.

• American lawyer Eugene Kim is involved in these legal proceedings, essential for obtaining identity disclosure orders from U.S. courts.

• Following legal action against the YouTube channel 'Taldeok Camp,' lawsuits against cyber wreckers are ongoing.

• The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office is investigating Mr. A, the operator of Taldeok Camp, for uploading defamatory videos about idol groups and earning significant criminal profits.

• The industry suspects some cyber wreckers are organized and corporate entities rather than individuals.

• The K-pop industry hopes future investigations will clarify the impact of organized defamatory activities on the value of K-pop artists and intellectual property rights.

ARTICLE TRANSLATION

It has been confirmed that numerous 'Cyberrekka' channels, known for ridiculing HYBE artists and posting slanderous videos, have been sued. These channels, akin to wreckers (tow trucks) flocking to traffic accidents, rush to celebrity-related content to profit from maliciously edited videos.

As of the 15th, the industry reports that HYBE has initiated legal proceedings this year against four known social media channels—'7th Grade of Middle School,' 'Guilty Archive,' 'Short Deputy Manager,' and 'Issue Feed'—for defamation of artists and obstruction of business.

Notably, many of these channels operate on overseas platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube, which were previously challenging to sue. This indicates that HYBE is taking decisive action to protect its artists. Until now, filing a complaint with domestic police was difficult because the servers verifying the identity of the accused were located abroad.

Following the announcement of a lawsuit from Source Music, which manages LE SSERAFIM, the YouTube channel Issue Feed, with 300,000 subscribers, went private and disappeared. The TikTok and Tistory accounts operated by Issue Feed also became private. This channel has also viciously attacked Jang Won-young of Starship Entertainment's Ive.

The YouTube channel ‘Short Deputy Director’ is also facing legal action from Source Music. When it became known that Source Music had requested a U.S. court to disclose the identity of the channel's operator, Short Deputy Director promised to post an apology and delete the problematic videos.

In April, HYBE applied to a federal court in California to disclose the identity of the operator of the YouTube channel '7th Grade Middle School,' which posted defamatory videos against New Genes. The following month, they requested an order to disclose the identity of the operator of the 'Guilty Archive' channel on X, suspected of spreading false information linking HYBE to a specific religious group.

In all these cases—7th Grade Middle School, Guilty Archive, Deputy Short, and Issue Feed—a common factor is the involvement of American lawyer Eugene Kim. Collaboration with a local lawyer is crucial for obtaining identity disclosure orders from U.S. courts. HYBE, responding to complaints from a subsidiary label about Cyber Wrecka, has initiated legal proceedings through a local law firm.

Following the legal action against the YouTube channel 'Taldeok Camp,' lawsuits against entertainment companies to reduce cyber wrecks are ongoing. Last month, the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office announced that Mr. A, the operator of Taldeok Camp, is suspected of uploading hundreds of false defamatory videos about idol groups like Aespa and Ive, earning over 200 million won in criminal profits since June 2021.

An entertainment industry official noted, "Among the cyber wreckers HYBE is targeting, some are suspected of being organized and corporate entities rather than individuals, like Taldeok Camp." If these organized activities are confirmed, it could significantly impact the industry.

This issue transcends individual malicious comments, revealing an intent to create defamatory posts about specific artists based on economic or competitive interests, thereby devaluing intellectual property rights (IP). The K-pop industry hopes future investigations will clarify these activities.

An industry official emphasized, "If defamatory posts from unknown sources are repeatedly published, the value of K-pop artists will be damaged, hindering their growth into global IPs. Posts that exceed the bounds of freedom of expression and are created for impure purposes must be eradicated."

UPDATE #2

Apology letter of Short Deputy Director YT channel. I am having this translated.

NOTE:

It seems HYBE is going to make this a large-scale case. It is not just a simple "defamation" case but a coordinated sabotage against a "brand" and "persons". This may mean they will take this both a civil and criminal court.

If this is happening in the US, this means HYBE America will be highly involved.

This is a huge step. Freedom of expression in the US is way different. As I've mentioned several times, tolerance is higher.

UPDATE NOTE FROM ME:  It will be expensive, bloody, and time consuming. But if HYBE takes at least one win, or gets to expose just one identity at least one of these people, it will be a landmark case and they can use that as an example against haters.

If they have any type of win in the US, going after people in other parts of the world will be a possibility.

I am not a lawyer but they have a slightly better chance if they present cases of defamation against minors. It's not a homerun but they will have a slightly better chance.