WJSN’s Luda and Dawon leave Starship Entertainment following contract expirations

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hybe Corp., the talent powerhouse behind K-pop sensation BTS, said on Friday that it will sell its share stake in agency rival SM Entertainment. The move would finalize Hybe’s admission of defeat in a dramatic takeover battle in which it was out-gunned by Korean tech leader Kakao Corp. Hybe initially bought a 14.8% stake in SM in February from SM’s founder and K-pop pioneer Lee Soo-man. Hybe expected to be able to buy the remaining 3% tranche held by Lee according to agreed conditions and then launched an open offer to other shareholders to buy a further 15%. But SM’s management opposed Hybe’s quasi-takeover and harnessed Kakao and its subsidiary Kakao Entertainment with a range of measures. These included a content distribution deal and the sale of newly issued shares and bonds to the Kakao pair.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief It is becoming harder not to perceive Tencent, China’s tech and entertainment giant and the world’s largest games firm by revenue, as a utility. It is now too big to be a growth stock darling and too widely-spread to escape the gravity of China’s underlying economic trends. Revenues in calendar 2022 flatlined at RMB554 billion, while net profits dropped 16% to RMB188.2 billion ($27.0 billion). The decrease reflected China’s economic reversal that began in the second quarter of the year with the arrival of a new COVID strain and stricter government measures to combat it. Tencent’s advertising revenues fell slightly, costs rose somewhat, and subscriber number were mixed – rising in music, but falling in video.

Keanu Reeves is reflecting on the life and legacy of his friend and co-star Lance Reddick, following the actor's untimely death.Reeves walked the red carpet at the premiere of , held at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood on Monday, where everyone wore blue ribbon pins in Reddick's memory, and his name was displayed first and upfront on the marquee.Reeves spoke with ET's Nischelle Turner about Reddick — who appeared in all four films in the franchise as hotel concierge Charon — and was also slated to appear in the upcoming spinoff film, «Lance is a very beautiful person and special artist,» an emotional Reeves shared of his late colleague. «His grace and dignity, his shining light of character was just something really special.»Reddick's rep confirmed the news of his death to ET on Mar. 17, stating that he «passed away suddenly this morning from natural causes.» He was 60.Looking at his time with Reddick, Reeves shared, "[I am] really grateful I had the chance to know him and work with him over almost 10 years.«The moving words echoes Reeves' tribute, which he shared shortly after news of Reddick's death first broke, alongside director Chad Stahelski.»We are deeply saddened and heartbroken at the loss of our beloved friend and colleague Lance Reddick," the pair said in their statement.

Princess Diana's brother Charles Spencer has blasted Donald Trump for claims he made about the late royal. The former US President has claimed his new book Letters to Trump will feature missives from Diana, the late Queen Elizabeth II, Russian president Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un - among others.

Everything Everywhere All at Once star Ke Huy Quan, 51, has revealed the career advice Cate Blanchett offered him following his recent Oscar win. Watch Below: Everything Everywhere All At Once TrailerThe star, who was interviewed by Variety shared the tidbit when asked if he feared not getting cast again after his recent ‘comeback’ and subsequent success.“I attended an event recently and sat next to Cate Blanchett. I told her that I don’t know what I’m going to do next, but I feel I have a responsibility to do something good, and that I don’t want to disappoint all the people that have supported me,” he explained. “And she said, ‘Just go with your heart and be irresponsible: Don’t worry about what other people think.

HYBE founder Bang Si-hyuk has opened up about its battle against Kakao to acquire shares of K-pop agency SM Entertainment.Today (March 15), Bang delivered a keynote speech at the Gwanhun Forum, hosted by the Gwanhun Club, an association of senior journalists in Korea. Held at the Korean Press Center in Seoul, South Korea, the forum provided attendees the opportunity to gain insight into Bang and HYBE’s vision of the K-pop industry.During a Q&A session at the event, Bang opened up about HYBE’s recent attempt to acquire SM Entertainment, and its battle against South Korean internet giant Kakao over the K-pop agency.

Starship Entertainment have confirmed that WJSN members Luda and Dawon are still part of the girl group.Yesterday, in a statement to South Korean news outlet TV Report, Starship Entertainment clarified the status of the two K-pop idols, noting that the duo “have not left WJSN”.The statement came shortly after WJSN member Soobin appeared on the YouTube channel Han Moon Chul TV, where she stated that the girl group “are still 10 members” and “have always been 10”, per Soompi.Luda and Dawon status as members of WJSN had been in question over the past week, after the pair left the K-pop agency. The duo were the only Korean members of the group to not renew their contract with Starship Entertainment.At the time, the K-pop agency said that they had “carried out sincere and in-depth discussions” with Luda and Dawon before their contracts ended.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Korean tech giant Kakao has gained the upper hand in the battle for control of K-pop agency SM Entertainment, after HYBE Corp., the firm behind music idols BTS, said Sunday that it had called off its takeover bid. SM is the second largest talent Korean music talent firm and is behind music acts including Super M, Aespa, BoA and Red Velvet, Girls’ Generation, H.O.T., EXO, Super Junior, SHINee and NCT Dream. HYBE said on Sunday that it will “discontinue the acquisition process […] after observing that the market has been showing signs of overheating due to competition with both Kakao and Kakao Entertainment,” something that it said could “damage shareholder value.”

EXCLUSIVE: Conqueror Entertainment, the L.A. and Beijing-based production outfit launched by former Legendary Entertainment executive Vasco Xu, has set a Chinese-language adaptation of leading sci-fi author Liu Cixin’s Supernova Era as one of it first projects. 

Naman Ramachandran Yash Raj Films’ 2018 hit “Sui Dhaaga: Made in India” will release in China on March 31. Starring Bollywood A-listers Varun Dhawan and Anushka Sharma, the film follows an unemployed small-town man who defies all odds and naysayers and revives his family’s garment business. The film’s plot is inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy that Indians should be self-dependent to achieve their goals. Dhawan plays a tailor, while Sharma plays an embroiderer in the film who, as husband and wife, team to fulfil their dreams of becoming entrepreneurs. The film is directed by Sharat Katariya and produced by Maneesh Sharma and Aditya Chopra for Yash Raj Films. The trio previously collaborated on the hit “Dum Laga Ke Haisha” (2015).

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund (PIF) has increased its stake in Japanese film and TV studio Toei Company, from 5% to 6.03%, according to a report by the Reuters financial news agency. The move comes shortly after Toei published a ten-year plan for international expansion. Toei includes film and TV production operations, the T-Joy cinema chain and Toei Animation. Last month, it said that it had beaten its film revenue record, thanks to the success of titles including “The First Slam Dunk,” “The Legend of Butterfly” and “One Piece Film Red.” The stake increase also follows PIF’s February announcement that it had increased its stake in Japanese games and console maker Nintendo to 8.26% and that (along with the Singapore state fund GIC) was a buyer of a $966 million bond issue from Korean entertainment-tech firm Kakao Corp.

The K-Pop world is currently going through one of its biggest ever corporate dramas, with SM Entertainment, the label of BoA, Girls Generation, EXO and Super Junior, fighting off what its management is describing as a hostile takeover from its rival HYBE, home of BTS. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Weekend honors at the South Korean box office went to the Japanese animation film “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba – To The Swordsmith Village,” the latest installment in the “Demon Slayer” film and TV franchise. It earned $2.31 million between Friday and Sunday, for nearly a quarter of the total weekend cinema business, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC).

Fan Bingbing and Jared Leto were among the stars at the Schiaparelli show at Paris Fashion Week!

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief A court in Seoul on Friday blocked a proposed move to issue new shares in K-pop talent agency SM Entertainment to Korean tech giant Kakao Corp. and its Kakao Entertainment subsidiary. An injunction was sought by Lee Soo-man, one of the pioneers of the Korean contemporary music industry, but who is recently at the center of a storm of controversy. Lee, who has fallen out with his company’s current management team, announced at the beginning of February his plans to sell a 14.8% stake in SM to HYBE Corp., the firm behind hit group BTS and a rival to SM. It then emerged that SM’s management was proposing to issue new shares to the Kakao pair, giving them a 9.05% holding, and sign an exclusive distribution contract. The share stake would make Kakao the second biggest shareholder in the firm after HYBE and dilute its influence.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief HYBE Corp., the talent firm behind K-pop sensation BTS, has launched a campaign to woo the shareholders of SM Entertainment, the rival Korean talent empire in which it is poised become the largest single shareholder. In a letter and video package, issued Thursday, HYBE said that it was launching a campaign website detailing its business strategy and the ways in which it plans to prioritize SM shareholders. The documents directly criticized SM’s current management and also struck out at Korean entertainment-tech giant Kakao, with which SM has recently struck an alliance.

EXCLUSIVE: Ley Line Entertainment and FirstGen Content have set an all-star ensemble for its co-production of On Swift Horses as Daisy Edgar-Jones, Jacob Elordi, Will Poulter, Diego Calva and Sasha Calle are on board to star. Daniel Minahan is on to direct with Peter Spears producing alongside Mollye Asher, Tim Headington and Theresa Steele Page on behalf of Ley Line with Michael D’Alto producing on behalf of FirstGen Conent. Bryce Kass is adapting the script.

CMU’s Andy Malt and Chris Cooke review key events in music and the music business from the last week, including Hybe CEO Park Ji-won’s defence of his company’s recent acquisition of shares in rival SM Entertainment after its management hit out at the deal, plus concerns raised by two more US senators about TikTok and its Chinese parent company Bytedance and what access the Chinese government has to users and user-data on the video sharing platform.SECTION TIMES01: Hybe (00:06:51)02: TikTok (00:19:11)(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)SUBSCRIBE TO SETLISTListen to Setlist and sign up to receive new episodes for free automatically each week through any of these services…Acast | Amazon Music | Apple Podcasts | audioBoom | CastBox | Deezer | Google Podcasts | iHeart | Mixcloud | RSS | Spotify | Stitcher | TuneInSTORIES DISCUSSED THIS WEEK• Hybe CEO defends his company’s bid to control rival SM Entertainment• Hybe boss sets out vision for SM alliance• Two more US senators hit out at TikTok over data concerns• European Commission bans staff from using TikTok on work devices over data concernsALSO MENTIONED• David Bowie archive acquisition (V&A press release)MORE FROM CMU• Upcoming CMU webinars• Buy MMF and CMU Insights’ Dissecting The Digital Dollar book on Amazon• Sign up to receive the CMU Daily news bulletin• Listen to the full Setlist theme tune

A popular brand of air fryers has been recalled in the US due to reports of fires and burns, the country Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Profits at Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce and media conglomerate, more than doubled in the three months to December 2022 to reach $6.63 billion (RMB45.7 billion), on revenues that increased by 2% to $35.9 billion (RMB248 billion). The figures, which constitute the third quarter of Alibaba’s current financial year to end March 2023, represent a significant rebound after two difficult quarters. Alibaba’s aggregate net profits between April and December are still down by 32% at just $6.32 billion, compared with the equivalent nine-month period in 2021. The group portrayed the results as “solid [..] despite softer demand, supply chain and logistics disruptions due to impact of changes in COVID-19 measures,” and said that China’s improving macro-economic outlook will help it recover further.