Not so fast: Hang-ups persist on EXO subunit's reintegration deal

The legal dispute between boy band EXO’s sub-unit EXO-CBX and SM Entertainment has flared again as the parties clash over terms related to EXO’s full-group return and a disputed revenue-sharing clause.

Boy band EXO's subunit EXO-CBX [JOONGANG ILBO]

The legal dispute between boy band EXO’s subunit EXO-CBX and SM Entertainment has flared again as the parties clash over terms related to EXO’s full-group return and a disputed revenue-sharing clause.

On Wednesday, EXO-CBX’s agency INB100 issued a statement saying the group had accepted SM Entertainment’s conditions on Oct. 2, with the aim of resuming EXO’s full-group activities. The statement added, however, that despite the acceptance on their part of the conditions, the trio are being excluded from the scheduled EXO reunion.

SM Entertainment responded immediately, insisting in a statement on Wednesday that EXO-CBX must first fulfill their obligation to pay 10 percent of personal-activity revenues to the agency. SM Entertainment said that this revenue-sharing requirement stems from an earlier settlement between the parties and was a nonnegotiable condition.

The agency also claimed that EXO-CBX, despite stating they accept all conditions, had previously lodged an objection to the clause, contradicting their public position.

INB100 clarified on Thursday in yet another statement that the trio remain committed to paying the 10 percent once legal procedures conclude. However, it emphasized the condition for the agreement was EXO participating as a full group, and that the earlier objection was a standard procedural step, not a refusal to agree.

The dispute traces back to June 2023, when EXO-CBX notified SM of their intent to terminate their exclusive contracts, citing long contract terms and lack of transparent accounting.

SM Entertainment counter-alleged external interference, known as “tampering,” and sued the trio. The conflict also involved demands by EXO-CBX for access to 13 years of settlement records and disclosure of accounting data, with the court subsequently rejecting most of their document requests. Meanwhile, the Fair Trade Commission and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism separately reviewed the case but found no violations.

Both sides have attended two mediation sessions thus far but have yet to reach a resolution.

The latest impasse brings into focus two key issues, the trio’s exclusion from SM Entertainment’s announced EXO reunion plans, and the 10 percent personal-activity revenue sharing clause.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]