Korean Netizens Demand HYBE Be Investigated After BTS’s “Chart Manipulation” Scandal Resurfaces

A recently resurfaced court ruling against an individual involved in extortion has reignited concerns over the marketing practices associated with the K-Pop supergroup BTS. As a result, netizens are asking for HYBE and other major idol groups to be investigated.

In 2017, the Seoul Central District Court uncovered evidence of ‘sajaegi marketing,’ or illegal marketing, during a case where an individual (known as Mr. A) threatened to expose these practices unless paid. He managed to extort approximately ₩57.0 million KRW (about $41,400 USD) through these threats.

The court noted that the activities Mr. A threatened to expose provided him a pretext for his criminal actions, leading to his conviction and a one-year prison sentence. Thus, Kyunghyang has reported that the court validated the illegal marketing allegations against the company.

The court’s findings have spurred debates about the integrity of marketing practices in the music industry, specifically those involving HYBE and BIGHIT MUSIC. The scandal has sparked a massive response on Korean community sites like TheQoo, where a post discussing the case has garnered over 35,700 views and 800 comments.

Netizens are calling for a broader investigation into not just BTS but other major idols and their agencies, questioning the legality of their marketing tactics. Many have also accused the company of thinking the public are “fools” and having “no conscience.”

• “Shouldn’t they be punished retroactively? They really have no conscience.”
• “Both the judge and the lawyer agreed it was manipulation, but let’s see if any comments come out now trying to muddy the waters with the verdict.”
• “Even if they come out, they’ll just stubbornly deny it and wait for time to pass. It’s really the first time they’ve gotten a proper hammering in the verdict. This could even be made into a movie, lol. Time is passing like grains of rice being shot out.”
• “Shouldn’t we investigate all the major idols this time? Especially HYBE, since there were suspicions about everyone at the beginning of the year.”
• “There’s this explanation meme going around on Twitter that a friend who’s preparing to be a lawyer shared, and now a real lawyer showed up, lol.”
• “That’s impressive.”
• “Wow, no wonder it felt like it was really heating up from the start — it turns out it was groundwork being laid.”
• “Nation-certified manipulation, lol. That’s impressive.”
• “If the blackmailer had threatened with false facts, that would have been reflected and noted in the sentencing. But there’s evidence listed that the blackmailer threatened with music chart manipulation, and the court saw this and judged that the victim had given them a pretext, lol. What does that tell you? They really think the public are fools, lol.”