On May 21st, it was confirmed that KOCCA, the Korea Creative Content Agency, opened an investigation over HYBE’s alleged manipulation of music charts in favor of BTS due to the strong complaints that arose in recent weeks.
Initially, the complaints regarding the manipulation of the music charts were filed with the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, but they were transferred to KOCCA to investigate the matter by requesting a response and cooperation from HYBE for this problematic.
Previously, an industry insider who reported chart manipulation cases said, “The term ‘music chart manipulation’ itself is misleading. Whether it’s physical albums or digital music, this is clearly ‘music chart manipulation’“.
In addition, the insider also said, “Whether KOCCA and its subordinate agencies will conduct a proper investigation into music chart manipulation remains questionable, given their close ties with music streaming platforms“.
However, the company behind BTS has responded to these accusations, saying that “allegations of chart manipulation, marketing manipulation, concept plagiarism, connections to a cult, and other such claims that tarnish BTS’s reputation are false“.
