IVE's Jang Won Young has won partial damages in her appeal trial in a defamation lawsuit against YouTuber Sojang.
Despite the initial 100 million won claim awarded in the first trial, the court has since spliced the compensation amount in half.
The 9-3rd Civil Appeals Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judges Yoon Jae Nam, Seon Ui Jong, and Jeong Deok Su) ruled that YouTuber A, or Sojang, the operator of the deleted YouTube channel 'Tal-deoksu-yong-so,' must pay 50 million won (around 34,805 USD) in damages.
Content creator Sojang faces allegations of cyber defamation from Jang, along with six other celebrities and influencers.
The allegations revolve around 23 videos uploaded on the platform between October 2021 and June 2023, which purportedly contained false statements and derogatory remarks towards the plaintiffs.
The lawsuit accused Sojang of making baseless accusations against Jang, including serious claims of professional sabotage.
Previously alleged lies include claims that Wonyoung had not been invited to the Miu Miu fashion show and had worn pieces from a previous collection upon attending, leading to Vogue Korea making a statement that the idol had, in fact, received an invitation to be there and the clothes she donned were from an unreleased collection.
The YouTuber also targeted the idol's family, including her. grandparents, for not being of Korean nationality and alleging that Jang is not Korean. Jang is Korean with a Chinese ethnic background.
A deep investigation by prosecutors discovered the YouTuber has earned 250 million KRW ($174,023) in revenue over the course of two years, some of which was reportedly used to purchase real estate.
Jang filed the lawsuit in October 2023 on grounds the uploaded videos spread false information and defamed her.
The idol's agency Starship Entertainment has also filed for damages against Sojang, with the first trial still ongoing.
In concurrent criminal trials, the YouTuber has since been indicted for defamation of Jang.
They received a sentence of two years in prison with three years of probation. The prosecution has since appealed the verdict with the second trial underway.
