SM Entertainment Loses Trademark Battle Against H.O.T, Members Free To Use Their Own Group Name In Promotions Moving Forward

Published Categorized as Kpop
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According to the legal community on the 23rd, the Second Division of the Supreme Court, presided over by Judge Jo Jae-yeon, confirmed the dismissal of the appeal in a trademark infringement lawsuit brought by former SM Entertainment CEO Kim Kyung Wook against concert organizer Salt Innovation.

The dismissal of the appeal means that unless there are specific reasons for illegality in the original trial judgment, the main trial will not proceed and the appeal will not be accepted, except in criminal cases.

In October 2018, former CEO Kim claimed trademark ownership and demanded royalty payments ahead of H.O.T.’s reunion concert. In response, the members and the concert organizer used the title ‘H.OT.’ but spelled it out as ‘High-Five of Teenagers’ instead.

Subsequently, former CEO Kim filed a civil lawsuit against Salt Innovation and member Jang Woo Hyuk, alleging that they had unlawfully used the H.O.T. trademark in concert promotion and planning. However, during the course of the lawsuit, the lawsuit against Jang Woo Hyuk was withdrawn.

However, the court did not rule in favor of former CEO Kim. The Patent Court had previously determined that “the decision to invalidate Kim’s trademark registration has been confirmed, and therefore, there was no right as a registered trademark from the beginning” regarding the trademarks in this case.

Fans are happy to hear this news.

Source: (A)

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