BTS's V and Jungkook win part of their lawsuit against a YouTuber, receiving additional damages in a Seoul court ruling.
January/23/2026 17:30
BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan) members V and Jungkook partially won in the appeal trial of a damages claim lawsuit against a controversial YouTuber. The Seoul Western District Court Civil Appeal Division 2-1 (Chief Judge Lee Juncheol) held the appeal trial today (23rd) regarding the damages claim filed by V, Jungkook, and their agency BIGHIT MUSIC against Mr. A, the operator of the YouTube channel "Taldok (De-otaku) Detention Center." The court ordered Mr. A to pay an additional 5 million won (about 500,000 yen) to both V and Jungkook, along with delayed interest, ruling in favor of the plaintiffs partially. The court partially overturned the first instance ruling where V and Jungkook lost, increasing the compensation amount. Previously, in the first instance, Mr. A was ordered to pay 51 million won (about 5.1 million yen) to BIGHIT MUSIC, and 10 million won (about 1 million yen) and 15 million won (about 1.5 million yen) to V and Jungkook respectively, with a partial victory for the plaintiffs. In this appeal trial, the compensation amount was increased by an additional 10 million won, bringing Mr. A's total payment to 86 million won (about 8.6 million yen). V and Jungkook filed a damages lawsuit for about 90 million won (about 9 million yen) in 2024, claiming that Mr. A published false videos that defamed them and disrupted their company's business. BIGHIT argued that Mr. A should also compensate for the unauthorized use of the agency's copyrighted material. Mr. A continued to produce and post videos on the YouTube channel "Taldok Detention Center" that featured malicious rumors about idols and other celebrities. Civil and criminal trials are ongoing for spreading false information and defaming other celebrities as well. Currently, the relevant channel has been deleted.
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