CBX “We Will Actively Respond to SM’s Legal Action + File a Lawsuit for Settlement Payments”
EXO's unit CBX (Chen, Baekhyun, Xiumin) reiterated their stance on the lawsuit against SM Entertainment
On June 14th, CBX’s agency INB100 stated “On June 12th, SM filed a lawsuit against us”, revealing that SM’s response was to take legal action. They explained, “In the press conference, we actively proposed a settlement plan to pay for the use of SM’s assets, such as music, instead of 10% of the sales revenue, but SM ignored this. Ultimately, SM responded to our negotiation proposal with immediate legal action without any reply.”
CBX’s side expressed their determination, “Since SM filed the lawsuit first, we will disclose all the negotiation processes from last year and actively engage in the matter.” They continued, “Through the legal process, we will obtain accounting and settlement data stipulated by the law and the exclusive contract to assert our rightful claims. We will also file a complaint with the Fair Trade Commission to seek a just legal judgment on the unfairness of the exclusive contract.”
They added, “We are truly sorry for causing anxiety and disappointment with the same issues as last year. We will minimize further statements and strive to resolve this situation quickly.”
Previously, on June 10th, CBX’s side held an urgent press conference to accuse SM of unfair treatment. They claimed that “SM had promised to lower the album distribution fee to 5.5% for INB100 but failed to do so and has been demanding 10% of the revenue from individual activities such as albums, concerts and advertisements from the artists”.
In response, SM stated, “The exclusive contract between us and CBX is still valid. We allowed individual activities through personal corporations, and CBX voluntarily signed the agreement, which includes paying 10% of the revenue from personal corporation activities.” SM also emphasized, “The essence of all these events is the improper enticement (tampering) of our artists by MC Mong and Chairman Cha Ga-won. We will not tolerate CBX’s actions of repeatedly claiming the invalidity of both the exclusive contract and the agreement for their personal gain. We will respond calmly through legal and principled measures and hold CBX accountable through the court.”
In response, CBX’s side issued an additional statement, urging SM to “clarify the standards and basis of the tampering allegations. We will strongly respond to SM’s claims of tampering by pursuing all civil and criminal liabilities for defamation and spreading false information”.
