BTS to take over Busan with ‘The City’ project ahead of free ‘Yet To Come’ concert

HYBE’s request to trademark V from BTS‘ popular ‘Borahae’ phrase.The phrase, now synonymous with BTS, was first coined by V during a BTS fanmeet event in 2016. The term, a portmanteau of the Korean words saranghae (I love you) and borasaek (purple), was created with the following message in mind to be used between BTS and their fanbase, per Soompi: “Just as purple is the last colour of the rainbow, I will trust and love you until the very end.”A report from Sports Kyunghangclaims that the South Korean entertainment giant’s request to trademark the ‘Borahae’ phrase was rejected as it went against the “principles of good faith”, as translated by Soompi.KIPO noted in their statement that the term was first coined by V – referred to in the report by his birth name, Kim Tae-hyung – during a BTS fanmeet on November 13, 2016, and that the entity entitled to the trademark is V himself.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Future Laobans,” a project directed by Maung Sun and produced by Maung Sun and Ma Aeint, claimed the Busan Prize, the top award at the Asian Project Market, on Tuesday. The awards were made at an event held at the Paradise Hotel in Busan’s Haeundae district at the end of three days of quick-fire meetings between producers and directors and an array of potential co-producers, financiers and distributors. Organizers said that they put together 705 such one-on-one meetings. The CJ ENM Award went to Indonesia’ “Gaspar,” to be directed by Yosep Anggi Noen and produced by Yulia Evina Bhara and Cristian Imanueli.

South Korea’s military appears to want to conscript members of the K-pop supergroup BTS for mandatory military duties, as the public remains sharply divided over whether they should be given exemptions.

The door for members of BTS to put their music careers on pause to serve in South Korea’s mandatory military draft is still very much open. In comments flagged by the Associated Press, Lee Ki Sik, commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration, said on Friday that it would be “desirable” for BTS members to take part in the draft in order to preserve the appearance of fairness. The government of South Korea appears close to deciding on whether or not the members of one of the biggest pop groups in the world will be forced to serve in the military.

whether they should be given exemptions.Lee Ki Sik, commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration, told lawmakers on Friday that it’s “desirable” for BTS members to fulfill their military duties to ensure fairness in the country’s military service.Earlier this week, Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup made almost identical comments about BTS at a parliamentary committee meeting, and Culture Minister Park Bo Gyoon said his ministry would soon finalize its position on the issue.Whether the band’s seven members must serve in the army is one of the hottest issues in South Korea because its oldest member, Jin, faces possible enlistment early next year after turning 30 in December.Under South Korean law, all able-bodied men are required to perform 18-21 months of military service. But the law provides special exemptions for athletes, classical and traditional musicians, and ballet and other dancers who have won top prizes in certain competitions that enhance national prestige.Without a revision of the law, the government can take steps to grant special exemptions.

South Korean sales company Finecut has picked up international rights to webtoon adaptation Brave Citizen (working title), produced by leading Korean OTT platform Wavve, on the eve of Busan’s Asian Film & Contents Market that runs October 8-11.

BTS‘ exemption from military service by December.The announcement was made during tourism minister Park Bo-kyun’s attendance of the South Korean National Assembly’s parliamentary inspection of the administration yesterday (October 5), per Ten Asia. Park shared a timeline for the decision after People Power Party member Lee Yong-ho requested for him to “actively review the issue of BTS’s military service”, as translated by Soompi.“Member Jin’s enlistment is set to be sorted out by December, but the MCST will finalise our stance as soon as possible before then,” Park said in response.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hong Kong multi-hyphenate Peter Chan Ho-sun is far too intellectual to call himself an “arms dealer,” as Sony Pictures has in casting itself as an unattached supplier to streaming platforms. But politeness and Bob Dylan references aside, Chan’s new company, Changin’ Pictures, aims to become a major independent purveyor of premium Asian TV content for the streamers. The company is using this week’s Busan International Film Festival as its launchpad and will unveil the first five series of its 20-title pan-Asian slate.  Chan’s thesis is that global audiences are hungry for Asian content but have not been able to access it easily under legacy film and TV distribution systems. With streaming making everything accessible everywhere, and audiences no longer balking at subtitles, quality Asian drama can and will travel.

AKMU‘s Lee Chan-hyuk will be making his debut as a soloist later this month with his first album, ‘Error’.Lee’s upcoming effort, titled ‘Error’ was first announced via social media earlier today (October 5). It will mark the musician’s first-ever solo project outside of sibling duo AKMU.A teaser image for Lee’s forthcoming record was also unveiled alongside the announcement, which features a cryptic photo of himself distorted by oversaturated film filters.

BTS from compulsory military service.On October 4 at the National Defence Committee’s interpellation session, Lee was asked for his opinion on a bill proposed by Kim Young-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea last month, which aims to allow pop celebrities like BTS, who have received merits from the government, to serve an alternative form of military service.According to KoreaJoongAngDaily, the defence minister stated that it is “desirable that members of BTS carry out their mandatory military service”. However, Lee also added that he would “respect the revised law if it does pass in Congress”.This follows the statement he made shortly after Kim’s bill was proposed, in which Lee said it would be “difficult” to extend this alternative [military service] programme to BTS due to “aspects of fairness on fulfilling mandatory military service”.In his original proposal, Kim suggested for existing provisions for athletes, actors, directors and classical musicians who have made a significant international impact be made available to decorated pop musicians such as BTS.

SHINee member Key will be making his upcoming ‘G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All Time) in The Keyland’ concert available to online audiences.On October 3, concert streaming platform Beyond Live announced that it would be selling tickets to the online broadcast of the second day of Key’s live concert on October 23 at 4PM KST.

Blackpink‘s management company is taking a stand after people circulated photos of group member Jennie Kim seemingly out with BTS member V.

Naomi Osaka is making every second count.

BTS‘ label Big Hit Music is taking action against an internet troll who targeted the septet.

Big Hit Music has issued a new statement claiming that it has filed new criminal complaints against “malicious postings” about BTS.The South Korean music label published the statement via the band’s Weverse page earlier today (September 29), where it shared that it is allegedly currently pursuing legal action against unidentified “perpetrators of malicious activities related to BTS”.“We have recently filed additional criminal complaints against postings with personal attacks and defamation using new information provided by fans as well as collected through our monitoring initiatives,” the company wrote in the statement.Big Hit Music added that it had come across “multiple defamation postings” containing false information about BTS on social media platforms both in and outside of South Korea, and have also located the person responsible for spreading and sharing “ill-intentioned rumour[s]”.“[Big Hit Music has] filed a criminal complaint against the poster after gathering all of the repetitively uploaded postings,” the label continued, adding that this was in accordance to its legal response process, where the company supposedly monitors and collects evidence on “malicious postings” for 365 days before including them in their formal complaints to the relevant authorities.“We would also like to share with you that after an extended police investigation, we were able to identify the suspect and the case has been sent to the prosecutor’s office,” Big Hit Music’s statement read. However, details regarding the identities of the offenders and circumstances of the posts in question were not publicly disclosed.

After two years of holding in-person but stripped down editions of the festival, South Korea’s Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, October 5-14) is back in full force this year with a packed line-up of screenings, red carpets, parties, awards and industry events.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Online video is taking up the role of growth engine for the Asia Pacific video industry as free-TV in the region moves into long-term decline, says a new report. The video sector is forecast to remain robust this year, but recession could deal a blow to sector performance in 2023. Video sector revenues – defined as subscription fees and advertising generated by free TV, pay-TV and online video platforms – in 14 Asia-Pacific markets are forecast to will grow by 6.4% in the current year to reach $143 billion, according to Media Partners Asia.

BTS have released a music video for ‘Yet to Come (Hyundai Ver.)’, a British rock remix of the septet’s latest title track.The new visual sees BTS performing the song live from a rooftop, interspersed with shots of children playing soccer, as well as crowds and families tuning in to watch World Cup events.“We’re going straight to the stars, they never thought we’d make it this far / Now the vision is clear, the goal of the century is here,” Suga and J-hope declare in revised lyrics for the chorus.The remixed version of ‘Yet to Come’ was produced in partnership with Hyundai as part of ‘Goal of the Century’, the car company’s promotional campaign for the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup. Following the track’s release, Hyundai is set to launch the #TeamCentury12 challenge on TikTok to promote the messaging behind BTS’ track.BTS are also set to hold a free live performance in Busan next month.

Thania Garcia South Korean R&B singer Crush, who is in the midst of a comeback after a two-year military service hiatus, has recruited BTS’ J-Hope for his new single, “Rush Hour.” The celebratory song arrived on Thursday with an accompanying music video which also stars J-Hope and sees both artists skating through elaborate dance numbers in an alleyway. After Crush begins the track, he’s joined by the BTS member, who playfully raps, “Wherever I go now it’s a red carpet feel / Cameras snapping wherever I go like flash, flash,” as a crowd of camera flashes appears behind him. Crush told the Korean entertainment publication Soompi that his decision to collaborate with J-Hope was natural, as they are both going in a similar musical direction, and added that he “was so grateful for [J-Hope] when he helped monitor and provided coaching.”

HYBE has published a new statement addressing the issue of expenses for BTS‘ forthcoming ‘Yet To Come’ concert in Busan.South Korean broadcast network KBS reported yesterday (September 21) claiming that the Busan government had sent out sponsorship request emails to the 10 biggest corporations in Korea as a means of funding BTS’ ‘Yet To Come’ Busan concert on October 15. The concert has been touted as free-of-charge for audiences, in order to support Busan’s bid to host the 2030 World Expo.KBS also reported that the Busan government had done so while attaching a contact for HYBE in their correspondence, claiming the request was passed down from the entertainment company.