NewJeans MV Dispute: Court to Rule on $750,000 Penalty Today

The legal dispute over a NewJeans music video is set for an appeals court ruling. The case pits the group's agency, ADOR, against video production company Dolphiners Films over the director's cut of "ETA."

The Seoul High Court's Civil Division 5-3 will deliver its ruling on Oct. 29 at 2 p.m. KST. The case stems from a damages suit ADOR filed against Dolphiners Films and director Shin Woo-seok.

The conflict began in August 2024, when Dolphiners Films posted the director's cut of the "ETA" music video on its own YouTube channel. ADOR argued that it owned the rights to the video and that releasing it without its prior consent violated their contract.

Shin's side disputed the claim, saying the video had been uploaded under a verbal agreement reached while Min Hee-jin was still ADOR's CEO.

The dispute also led to the removal of other NewJeans videos. Shin said ADOR had requested the deletion of related content, prompting him to remove NewJeans videos from the "Ban Hee-soo Channel," an unofficial fan channel he operated. ADOR denied making such a request, saying it had only asked for the "ETA" director's cut to be taken down.

In September 2024, ADOR filed a lawsuit against Dolphiners Films and Shin, seeking approximately $820,000 (1.1 billion won) in damages over alleged breach of contract and related claims.

On Jan. 13, the Seoul Central District Court's Civil Division 62 ruled partly in ADOR's favor. The court ordered Dolphiners Films to pay approximately $750,000 (1 billion won) as a contractual penalty, plus 12% annual interest on late-payment interest. It dismissed ADOR's separate claim for approximately $75,000 (100 million won) in damages against Shin personally.

Dolphiners Films challenged the ruling, arguing that the court had acknowledged the verbal agreement but still held the company liable for failing to obtain written consent as required by the contract. The company called the decision contradictory, filed an appeal and requested a suspension of enforcement.

ADOR also appealed, bringing the dispute before the higher court.

The appeals court will determine whether to uphold the lower court's ruling, including the contractual penalty imposed on Dolphiners Films. A central issue is whether the verbal agreement affects the company's contractual obligations to obtain written consent.