HYBE Insists on Banning Lee Soo Man from Entertainment Industry

SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo Man has reportedly requested a cancelation on his ban from the entertainment industry, but HYBE has apparently refused to do so. Why? Check out the following complete report.

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HYBE Refuses to Lift the Ban on SM Entertainment Founder Lee Soo Man

Following the failed merger between the two largest South Korean Entertainment companies: HYBE and SM Entertainment, many have wondered what happened to Lee Soo Man, SM’s founder and former executive producer. Apparently, Lee Soo Man has been trying hard to make a comeback to the entertainment industry once again.

On May 5, Korean media Hankyung reported that SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo Man had been at odds with HYBE over the “no competition” clause of their contract.

When Lee Soo Man and HYBE signed a sales contract that caused a massive commotion among SM Entertainment and the global public, he signed a “no competition” clause.

A “no competition” clause means to ban the stocks/business seller from making money in the same industry as the buyer for a certain period. It is a policy that commonly used to prevent competition within the field.

The SM Entertainment founder previously sold his shares to HYBE as a counterattack against Kakao. But today, HYBE has suddenly reached an agreement with Kakao and resold its shares to the competitors instead.

Sources from the investment banking industry told Hankyung media that Lee Soo Man was furious about this HYBE’s bertrayal. That is why he had been demanding HYBE lift the ban against him.

But apparently, HYBE has outrightly refused.

Why Did HYBE Reject the Request SM Entertainment Founder Lee Soo Man?

So, why did HYBE insist on having Lee Soo Man banned from the entertainment industry?

Responding to the circulated news about Lee Soo Man’s request, HYBE stated that their agreement on SM Entertainment and contract with Lee Soo Man are two separate entities. Therefore, HYBE believed they had no legal obligation to lift the anti-competition clause.

That is why they will not grant Lee Soo Man’s request.

Hankyung further reported that from Lee Soo Man’s point of view, by backing out from the SM Entertainment acquisition, the company has betrayed Lee Soo Man with the worst result. But the giant corporation did not seem to budge and continued banning Lee Soo Man from the entertainment industry.

Meanwhile, fans believe that banning Lee Soo Man from the entertainment industry is entirely ironic. That is because, in the past, he was famous for being the one banning many of SM’s former artists from returning.

Do you think so too?

A Perplexing Decision

Finally, such a rejection was, according to the report, unexpected since having Lee Soo Man back to the business will actually be beneficial for the company.

Indeed, industry experts believe that HYBE is likely to maintain their decision to continue banning Lee Soo Man from the entertainment business. However, the same experts also pointed out that banning Lee Soo Man was not a wise decision for the company. And that was especially when they had given up acquiring SM Entertainment.

Therefore, Hankyung media also reported some analysis that HYBE would eventually lift the ban against SM Entertainment’s founder Lee Soo Man sooner or later. After all, having Lee Soo Man build his new enterprise company will finally weaken SM Entertainment’s competitiveness. And it will be advantageous for HYBE as the competitor.

So, what do you think HYBE’s next step will be? Will they continue banning Lee Soo Man? Or allow him to return to the entertainment business? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. And stay up to date with recent news from K-Entertainment business on Kpoppost Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram channel.

In the meantime, let us watch SM Entertainment’s super rookie aespa and their latest release.