Popular Singer Could Face Criminal Penalties— Sparks Divided Reactions
It was recently confirmed that singer Sung Si Kyung’s one-man agency, SK Jaewon, was reported to be operating without registering as a popular culture and arts planning business since its establishment in 2011.
After his exclusive contract with Jellyfish Entertainment ended, he moved to SK Jaewon, where his older sister was CEO.
Under the Popular Culture and Arts Industry Development Act, corporations and individual business owners with more than one person must register as a popular culture and arts planning business. This is mandatory, and violations are subject to criminal penalties.
Sung Si Kyung’s sister, who founded the company in 2011, did not register as a popular culture and arts planning business, making it an illegal operation. The registration system for popular culture and arts planning businesses went into effect in 2014, and enforcement regulations initiated the registration process.
An entertainment agency representative stated, “The registration process is not complicated. It seems like many agencies are delaying registration these days.”
In response, Sung Si Kyung’s agency representative stated, “When the agency was established in 2011, the relevant law did not exist. Since then, we have not received any official registration documents. We are now aware of this and have inquired about registering as a popular culture and arts planning business.”
However, netizens expressed a divided response to the situation.
- “He might not have known if the law came about after establishing the company.”
- “How doesn’t he know things like this when he acts all smart?”
- “It’s understandable to know if the law wasn’t set in place when he first started…I’ve seen this happen a lot.”
- “It’s not like he’s been in the industry for a few years…how can he not know this? All the insiders should know…”
- “There’s no way he didn’t know…”
- “But I heard there are no real benefits from registering this…”
- “He might not have known, but for that long?”
