Three members of the group EXO, namely Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen (Byun Baekhyun, Kim Minseok, Kim Jongdae), have revealed the injustice in their exclusive contracts with SM Entertainment and announced the termination of their contracts.
Contract Termination with SM Entertainment
On the morning of June 1, 2023, Attorney Lee Jae-Hak from Lin Law Firm, representing Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen of EXO, released an official statement regarding the injustice in the exclusive contracts between them and SM Entertainment.
According to the statement, the long-term contracts between Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen and SM Entertainment are deemed unfair, and they believe that SM has engaged in unfair practices.
The attorneys also stated, “The artists feel that SM has forced them to sign contracts akin to slavery for approximately 20 years, including their trainee period.”
In their statement, the artists expressed, “Despite our earnest request for copies of the settlement data since May 31 through several content verifications, we have not received the basis for the settlement. Therefore, we are unable to make the original payment on June 1. We have notified SM about the termination of these exclusive contracts and emphasized that SM has not provided us with the settlement data and basis, while strongly denying that SM has properly paid the settlement fees to us.”
Planning to Sue SM Entertainment
The artists plan to take civil and criminal legal actions, including filing a lawsuit against SM Entertainment to examine the settlement details thoroughly.
Furthermore, if the settlement data and reasons for settlement have not been provided to other SM artists, this issue will not only impact Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen but will eventually become a problem for all SM artists.
The artists also expressed their views on long-term contracts and efforts to extend them. They stated, “Previously, we signed exclusive contracts with SM for more than 12 to 13 years. This greatly differs from what was expected and is disadvantageous to us, as these contracts exceed reasonable limits.”
Additionally, they explained, “The current exclusive contracts have an excessively long duration and restrict personal rights. According to Article 45, Clause 1, Sub-clause 6 of the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act, such actions are considered unfair trade practices. Based on Annex Table 2 of the same Enforcement Decree, prolonged coercion in contracts falls under ‘Forcing to provide benefits’ or ‘Providing disadvantages (arrangement of unfavorable transaction conditions).'”
Regarding the long-term exclusive contracts and contract extensions, the artists stated that Baekhyun, Xiumin, and Chen are seriously considering filing a complaint with the Fair Trade Commission.