ADOR Wins Again: NewJeans 'ETA' -Director's Cut- Costs Dolphiners Films 1 Billion Won

A Seoul appeals court has left ADOR's 1 billion won (roughly $700,000) damages award against ad production house Dolphiners Films untouched. The ruling on the 29th covers the director's cut of NewJeans' "ETA" music video.

The Seoul High Court's Civil Division 5-3 (Judges Kang Sung-hoon, Song Hye-jung and Kim Dae-hyun) rejected the appeals from both sides. ADOR, the NewJeans agency, and the defendants, Dolphiners Films and director Shin Woo-seok, each went in wanting a different result. Neither got one.

That means the first-instance verdict holds. The lower court ordered Dolphiners Films to pay ADOR 1 billion won plus 12% annual interest on late payment.

How the dispute started

In August 2024, Dolphiners Films posted a director's cut of the "ETA" video on its own YouTube channel. ADOR objected and demanded it come down. The disagreement ended up in court.

The agency's ADOR-side win is now confirmed at two levels. Whether the defendants take it to the Supreme Court is not stated in the source, so that remains an open question.