Trade Committee Investigating All Celebrities In SM

The Fair Trade Committee (FTC) has launched an investigation regarding all the celebrities associated with SM Entertainment (SM) regarding the accordance of their contracts to the FTC's regulations and many fear that a 'Second TVXQ dispute' will arise.

According to the office of Jo Mun Hwan (member of the Grand National Party). the FTC has instigated an investigation of the contracts of 53 artistes of SM including Girls Generation, Super Junior and TVXQ, whose three members (Xiah Junsu, Micky Yoochun, YoungWoong Jaejoong) are locked in a legal dispute with the agency.

SM Vs Mnet

The sixteen-month-long conflict between SM Entertainment, one of Korea’s biggest entertainment agencies, and Mnet Media, K-pop’s leading company, has finally revealed itself to the public.

SM Entertainment officially investigated for unfair contract terms!

Korea’s Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has announced that they are currently investigating all celebrities bound to SM Entertainment regarding unfair contract terms, suggesting that “a second TVXQ scandal” like event may occur.

According to One Nation’s Jo Moon Hwan, it was revealed that KFTC is investigating cases of unfair contract terms in SME idols such as TVXQ (including Junsu, Yoochun and Jaejoong who are currently in legal disputes with their management company), SNSD, Super Junior, etc. for a total of 53 SME celebrities.

Jo Moon Hwan stated that the question and answer document received from KFTC specified investigations for all SME affiliated individuals for reasons related to a delay in taking care of TVXQ’s legal case. KFTC expressed,

SM-TVXQ Current Exclusive Contract Released

We will reveal the exclusive contract SM Entertainment holds with its celebrities. Although this contract is the one between TVXQ and SM, it can be inferred that it is almost a basis contract for all the others. Also, as SM stated that the income division for TVXQ was the best they offered, one can surmise that the content of the contracts of other groups such as Girls' Generation, Super Junior etc. will be worse.

In the contract, it states that TVXQ must pay for all of the expenses required for their activities and this implies the wages for their managers and road managers. "TVXQ must pay for their travel fees and rent fees, as well as their meals, make up and coordinators' wages, dance crew and any other stage crew costs. They must also pay for the wages of their managers' monthly wages (The wages of the manager is 800,000 per month and the wages of road managers is 600,000 per month, and this increases by 10% every year.)"

Yoona of Girls' Generation and the members of TVXQ are being issues, for they are selected to be witnesses of the parliamentary inspection of the administration which will proceed most probably on the 5th of October.

Seung-deok Kho and Mun-hwan Jo, members of the Grant National Party, have requested Jaejoong, Junsu and Yoochun of TVXQ, Yoona of SNSD and Lee Sooman, to be witnesses regarding the unjust contracts against entertainers at the Administration of Inspection of the Fair Trade Commision.

Parties concerned are claiming that even if they are selected as witnesses, the chances of attending the parliament is very small.

Credit: OneTVXQ.com