Kim Tae Ho, the CEO of BELIFT LAB, has denied the plagiarism accusations involving ILLIT and NewJeans during a recent National Assembly hearing.
On October 24th, Kim appeared as a witness at the audit to address several issues, including claims of HYBE's alleged manipulation of album sales and the plagiarism controversy surrounding ILLIT and NewJeans.
During the session, Democratic Party representative Min Hyung Bae asked about album sales practices, saying, “Are you aware of the issue regarding album sales manipulation? Some albums were sold under specific conditions, like fan sign events and lucky draws.”
In response, Kim explained, “Earlier this year, concerns were raised, and we conducted an internal audit. We confirmed that only a small percentage of albums sold in 2023 were returnable, and we did not sell any albums under return conditions. We’ve since updated our company guidelines.”
When asked about the impact of such sales, Kim said, "We understand the concerns, but there was no market disruption. The number of albums sold with return options wasn’t enough to cause any major market interference.”
Representative Min also brought up the plagiarism claims, asking, “What is your stance on the allegations that BELIFT LAB plagiarized NewJeans?”
Kim firmly denied the accusations, stating, "It’s not true. We’ve already filed lawsuits against former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin, and we plan to reveal the truth through legal channels.”
Kim concluded by apologizing for the situation, saying, “I deeply regret the stress this has caused. As an entertainment company, our goal is to bring joy to the public, and I will do everything possible to prevent issues like this from happening again.”
Sources: [1]
