HYBE said it will strengthen strict measures to combat the illegal use of BTS’s name, logo and image.
According to sources from Korea Herald, HYBE – the management company representing BTS – announced that it will take action against illegal use of its intellectual property. In particular, unauthorized use of names, logos and images related to BTS will face the law.
“We will strengthen supervision and take strict measures against acts that violate the rights of companies and artists for commercial use,” a HYBE official stated.
The company also mentioned the case of the Nam Gu district office of Busan (South Korea) using the official BTS logo for a photo area near the port in Oryuko to promote the island. Previously, Oryukdo was where member Jimin once filmed an online video and it has become a favorite place for fans to visit.
Goyang City located in Kyunggi Province is also promoting city tourism with a portrait of member RM on the wall of the tourist information center. A sculpture of BTS’s name on Maengbang beach in Samcheok will also be removed this month at the request of HYBE.
The portrait of group leader RM is painted on the wall of the Tourist Information Center in Goyang City. (Photo: Goyang City)
“We do not allow government agencies, local authorities and organizations to create street, sculpture and wall paintings with the portraits and names of our affiliated artists,” HYBE emphasized. strongly, “Such creations are a violation of intellectual property rights. We ban these creations because they can negatively affect the artist’s image when damaged or due to poor management.”
Illegal use of BTS images has also taken place on social networking platforms. Specifically, The Camp – an application that allows relatives to send letters to soldiers – has created a separate space for BTS fans and calls this the official community. However, HYBE denied this information, affirming that BTS’s only official fan community is on the Weverse platform. After the company sent a warning letter to The Camp, this application removed the word “official” and corrected the information.