South Korean government reported to frame choreography guidelines after Min Hee-jin's accusations of ILLIT allegedly plagiarising NewJeans

On May 18, 2024, the ongoing HYBE versus Min Hee-jin dispute reportedly pushed the South Korean government to create guidelines for choreographies. Chosun Biz reported that the Choreography Copyright Association of Korea led by the organization's President, Leah Kim, told the media outlet that choreographers' rights need to be protected. This stemmed from the ongoing case where Min Hee-jin accused HYBE's girl group ILLIT of allegedly plagiarising NewJeans' choreographies.

Guidelines on choreographic copyright have reportedly been initiated by the government and the President's Office. According to a government source, the system needs to accommodate the new definition of "music content." While the rules do not have legal force behind them, the government anticipates that they will encourage big agencies that are participants in the contract to participate significantly.

"The concept of 'music content’ has changed and the system must support it. We plan to distribute it within this year." (as reported by Chosun Biz and translation taken from Google Translate)

It is anticipated that the recommendations would contain standard contracts and copyright fee calculation methodologies in addition to criteria for determining choreography's originality, based on the findings of the ongoing Policy Study on Strengthening Choreography Copyright Protection.

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More about ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin's accusations of ILLIT plagiarising NewJeans

The K-pop industry has been witnessing the biggest lawsuit in more than a decade, reportedly, HYBE Corporation and its affiliate label ADOR's CEO locked horns on April 21, 2024. The parent company accused Min Hee-jin of illegally trading company secrets and planning a takeover by acquiring ADOR's share with the help of outside investors.

Min Hee-jin refuted all the allegations and further accused the parent company, HYBE, of mistreating NewJeans. She also accused HYBE of being discriminative towards the rookie girl group and that Bang Si-hyuk ignored the group's greetings blatantly. Meanwhile, HYBE found multiple pieces of evidence against the ADOR CEO and launched an investigation. They further requested that she step down from her position as CEO of ADOR.

Amidst the ongoing power tussle, Min Hee-jin conducted a press conference on April 26, 2024, where she accused Belift Lab's rookie girl group, ILLIL, of copying and plagiarising NewJeans content. Just like ADOR, Belift Lab is another affiliate under HYBE Corporation's multi-label structure that debuted its new girl group ILLIT in March 2024.

As a result of the allegations, netizens were quick to verify it themselves and noticed several dance sequences from ILLIT's choreographies to be similar to ADOR's flagship girl group NewJeans—who debuted in November 2022.

However, several other internet users pointed out that since dance is a creative art form, every artist's choreography takes some inspiration from other dance forms and sequences. Fans of ILLIT further came forward in support of the new rookie girl group under HYBE, while some criticised Min Hee-jin and HYBE for involving both K-pop groups in their ongoing public feud.

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A compelling introduction to the quintet, SUPER REAL ME, the debut mini album by ILLIT, representing HYBE LABELS’ Belift Lab agency, was released on March 25. The group members are YUNAH, MINJU, MOKA, WONHEE, and IROHA. The EP consists of four songs, featuring the lead single Magnetic and the experimental B-side tracks My World, Midnight Fiction, and Lucky Girl Syndrome.