The former and current agencies of The Boyz, who had been engaged in a tense war of nerves over the use of the group‘s name, reached a dramatic agreement through a meeting late on the 5th.

The Boyz’s new agency, 100, announced that night that it had reached a final agreement with the former agency, IST Entertainment, on three agreements regarding the use of the ‘The Boyz’ trademark. The specific details of the agreement were not disclosed.

One Hundred, who had a conflict with IST over the truth and falsity of trademark use, said, “We have let go of our resentment and had an open conversation (with IST).” They added, “We have reached an agreement that gives priority to The Boyz and the fandom ‘The B’, with all members having transferred, so everyone can be happy.”

This incident was triggered when the issue of ‘trademark rights’, or the continued use of the group‘s name, arose during the process of The Boyz transferring to their new agency One Hundred after their 7-year exclusive contract with their former agency expired. Regarding the transfer of trademark rights, both sides once showed signs of sharp confrontation, debating the truth of their claims.

While the former agency stated that IST would provide the members with trademark usage rights free of charge, One Hundred strongly opposed IST’s statement, stating that they had received an agreement with specific conditions, many of which were “very unfavorable to the artist, not the company, so we cannot accept them.”

Separately from this dramatic agreement, One Hundred, The Boyz‘s new agency, also garnered attention by registering a third trademark in preparation for difficulties in trademark negotiations. Trademarks officially registered by One Hundred included ‘The Voice’, ‘The New Boyz’, ‘TNBZ’.

The Boyz completed their transfer to their new agency One Hundred as of the 5th.


Reporter Heo Min-nyeong mignon@donga.com