"We will work harder to bring better service": HYBE and Dunamu's joint venture MOMENTICA apologizes for using RIIZE photos without SM's consent

On Tuesday, April 23, MOMENTICA released an apology statement for using RIIZE's photos without SM Entertainment's permission. MOMENTICA is a joint venture created by HYBE and Dunamo. It is a digital photo card exchange platform, and they announced that they'll also be releasing RIIZE photos on their platform.

However, on April 23, they released a statement expressing that the photo release was canceled. They explained that they received a complaint from SM Entertainment, and since they were allegedly caught by the agency for using RIIZE's photos without prior consultation, MOMENTICA has to cancel the project. Regardless, they also made sure to apologize for their actions.

Here's what the apology letter read:

"Hello, this is MOMENTICA. We would like to inform you that the RIIZE photo cards scheduled to open today will no longer be available. SM notified us of using RIIZE’s portraits in a promotional post for MOMENTICA without SM’s prior consent. We apologize to SM and the fans waiting for the service for the lack of sufficient consultation in advance. MOMENTICA will work harder to bring better service. Thank you."

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MOMENTICA, a joint venture of HYBE and Dunamu, released a statement apologizing for its non-consensual usage of RIIZE photos

In October 2022, HYBE announced its collaboration with Dunamu, the parent company of Korea's No. 1 cryptocurrency exchange company, Upbit. The collaboration, with a further partnership with LEVELS, Dunamu's blockchain company, resulted in the creation of MOMENTICA.

Therefore, MOMENTICA is a platform where users can sell and buy digital collectibles of their artists, such as BTS, TXT, LE SSERAFIM, etc. Instead of money, people use a cryptocurrency called LEMON or LEMN. For almost two years, the platform has been quite a successful venture and was also well-received by the audience, as fans enjoyed the innovative take on collective memories with their favorite artists.

While most of the digital collectibles MOMENTICA has released revolve around HYBE artists, it recently announced that RIIZE's photos will also be added to the platform. Though fans and other netizens thought that HYBE and Dunamu reached out to SM Entertainment to gain the copyrights before the release, that hasn't been the case.

SM neither approved the promotional posts regarding the project announcement nor the release of the K-pop boy group's photos on MOMENTICA's platform. It has allegedly been caught trying to use RIIZE's photos without SM Entertainment's permission, thereby leading to the cancellation of the project.

DAUM, a Korean media outlet, put forth an entertainment insider's thoughts on the recently unfolded incident. He explained that K-pop has been an increasingly protective industry, and even something as simple as mentioning an artist housed under another entertainment agency can be marked as IP infringement.

Therefore, the insider advised that more careful steps need to be taken while managing content surrounding other artists.

"As the economic value and importance of K-pop singers' IPs are growing, companies that provide services using them must be more careful. Nowadays, just mentioning their names without prior consent is considered IP infringement. As this can be an example, if you blindly open a service without consultation, you could be held legally responsible."

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While many people were happy about the venture as it addressed the increasing need for photo cards and digital collectibles among K-pop fans, netizens were surely disappointed by MOMENTICA's recent behavior. Several people discussed how consultation and consent are basic and must-have necessities when using other artists' content.