HYBE Labels is suing former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin for ₩2.50 billion KRW ($1.80 million USD), with ₩2 billion KRW ($1.44 million USD) claimed by HYBE’s BELIFT LAB, the agency behind rookie group ILLIT.
At the third hearing of the Seoul Western District Court on July 18, BELIFT LAB argued Min accused ILLIT of plagiarizing NewJeans, HYBE’s girl group.
BELIFT’s legal team cited Min’s complaints about ILLIT’s use of outdoor LED billboards, Paris Eiffel Tower selfies, and group photo lineups as copied from NewJeans.
They countered by showing side-by-side comparisons of NewJeans and former HYBE group GFRIEND’s content — like MV edits switching from 16:9 HD to 4:3 resolution, girls running on bridges, and school uniform concepts.
BELIFT pointed out GFRIEND did all these concepts 5-6 years before NewJeans.
Additional examples included ads with red structures by the sea, hanbok-themed photoshoots, all-white group photos, and dreamy aesthetics.
The legal team stressed they are not accusing NewJeans of copying GFRIEND, but accused Min of exaggerating incidental similarities as deliberate copying.
BELIFT is using GFRIEND’s earlier work to argue NewJeans’ concepts have similar overlaps, just like ILLIT’s.
The public reaction was swift and mostly negative.
Many fans criticized BELIFT for dragging GFRIEND into the lawsuit.
“I didn’t think of GFRIEND when I saw NewJeans, but when I saw ILLIT, a lot of the time NewJeans instantly came to mind.”
“Why bring up GFRIEND out of nowhere? LOL. When ILLIT first came out, everyone was going crazy saying they reminded them of NewJeans.”
“They could’ve just said, ‘Is NewJeans free from this too?’ without naming anyone…”
“Why drag other idols into this and make a scene?”
“What GFRIEND fans hate the most is the company dragging others like this. People did say they thought ILLIT was NewJeans when they saw their early photos. But no one ever said they mistook NewJeans for GFRIEND. Seriously, have some conscience.”
The lawsuit and these arguments are drawing heat as the case continues. Fans and netizens are watching closely.
Source: Theqoo, Star News
