A South Korean court has ruled partially in favor of ADOR in its damages lawsuit against content studio Dolphiners and director Shin Woo-seok, ordering the studio to pay substantial compensation over the unauthorized upload of a NewJeans music video.
On January 13, the Seoul Central District Court’s Civil Division 62, presided over by Judge Lee Hyun-seok, delivered its verdict in ADOR’s damages claim. The court ordered Dolphin Kidnappers to pay ₩1 billion (approximately USD 750,000) to ADOR, plus annual interest of 12 percent, calculated from December 14, 2024, until the full amount is paid.
However, the court dismissed ADOR’s separate claim seeking ₩100 million in damages from director Shin personally.
Background of the Lawsuit
ADOR filed the lawsuit in September 2024, seeking a total of ₩1.1 billion in damages from Dolphiners and Shin Woo-seok. The company argued that the defendants breached contractual obligations and committed an unlawful act by uploading a director’s cut of NewJeans’ ‘ETA’ music video without prior approval.
Dolphiners is a well-known content studio led by Shin Woo-seok, who previously worked closely with Min Hee-jin, former CEO of ADOR, directing multiple NewJeans music videos. The studio also operated the YouTube channel ‘Ban Hee-soo,’ named after NewJeans’ fandom, Bunnies.
The Disputed Video Upload
In August 2024, Dolphiners uploaded a director’s cut version of the ‘ETA’ music video to its own YouTube channel. ADOR objected to the upload, stating that it had not been coordinated with advertisers and had not received prior consent. The label requested the video’s removal. Following the request, Shin Woo-seok posted a critical message on social media, stating that Dolphiners would no longer be able to publicly release any NewJeans related content it had produced. Subsequently, all NewJeans related videos on the Ban Hee-soo channel were taken down.
ADOR later clarified that it had only requested the removal of the director’s cut due to lack of prior approval, denying that it had demanded a blanket deletion or suspension of all related content.
Legal Dispute and Court’s Focus
The conflict escalated into multiple legal actions. In November 2024, Shin filed a criminal complaint alleging that ADOR’s public statements had damaged his reputation. ADOR, in turn, pursued civil litigation against both Shin and Dolphiners. The central issue in the civil case was whether there had been prior agreement allowing the director’s cut to be uploaded. Shin and Min Hee-jin asserted that a verbal agreement existed, while ADOR maintained that no such consent had been given.
The court ultimately found Dolphiners liable for damages, concluding that the upload lacked proper authorization. Further details regarding the court’s reasoning have not yet been fully disclosed. The ruling marks a significant legal decision regarding content ownership and approval processes in the K-pop industry, particularly amid increasing scrutiny over intellectual property and digital distribution rights.