IVE's Jang Wonyoung and agency win 50M KRW defamation lawsuit against Sojang, following BTS' Jungkook and V
The Seoul Central District Court has delivered a significant verdict in a civil defamation lawsuit involving the now-deleted YouTube channel Sojang. The channel is also known as Taldeok Camp. Its operator has been ordered to pay 50 million KRW in damages to Starship Entertainment. The compensation is for distributing false and defamatory content about IVE member Jang Wonyoung.
On May 4, 2025, Judge Choi Mi Young of the court's 50th Civil Division presided over the first trial hearing. It had initially been postponed from its original date of April 23. The court partially sided with Starship. They concluded that the channel's content had seriously harmed both the idol's image and the agency's reputation.
Basis for court's decision
While the agency had filed for 100 million KRW in damages, the judge awarded 50 million won plus interest, citing multiple aggravating factors. The court considered:
The number and severity of the uploaded videos,
The malicious and misleading nature of their content,
Starship's prominent status within the entertainment industry,
The central role of Jang Wonyoung and IVE in the agency's business operations,
The fact that Sojang operated as a high-profile 'cyber wrecker', influencing public opinion and fueling online hate.
Moreover, it was noted that each of Sojang's defamatory videos garnered between 100,000 and 1 million views. This amplifies the damage done to Jang Wonyoung's public image.
About Starship vs Sojang case
Starship Entertainment has been pursuing both civil and criminal litigation against the operator since November 2022. The operator was previously indicted under South Korea's Information and Communications Network Act, which penalizes acts of defamation and online personal attacks.
Sojang had built a reputation for targeting high-profile celebrities through a series of videos spreading baseless claims. In addition to Jang Wonyoung, the channel also published harmful content about BTS, Kang Daniel, and other K-pop stars and influencers. Reports revealed that the operator profited nearly 250 million KRW from monetized views before the channel was ultimately taken down.
Sojang's mounting legal defeats
Apart from her agency's legal actions, Jang Wonyoung herself had independently filed a separate lawsuit of 100 million KRW against the same channel. In January 2025, the court ruled in her favor. It ordered the operator to pay another 50 million won in compensation directly to the idol.
The May 4 ruling is only the latest in a series of courtroom losses for Sojang. In November 2024, the channel operator was ordered to pay 30 million won in damages to Kang Daniel. The court found the posted content to be false and intentionally damaging.
In another significant judgment from February 2025, Big Hit Music, along with BTS members V and Jungkook, won a combined 76 million KRW in damages against Sojang. The breakdown included:
51 million KRW to Big Hit Music,
10 million KRW to V (Kim Taehyung),
15 million KRW to Jungkook.
These repeated losses paint a grim picture for the channel's operator, who now faces a heavy legal and financial burden.
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