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On April 13th, SM Entertainment filed a breach of contract counter suit against 3 members of DBSK. Fine, that’s their right; in fact, I wondered why they didn’t do that in the first place. That’s usually what happens when a big moneymaker breaks ranks. The thing I’m hung up on is, what leg do they honestly think they have to stand on in the court of public opinion? Yes, they might win their court case, but they’ll lose in the long run. All of SM Entertainment’s dirty laundry has been aired already; what point is there to counter sue? You’d just be taking your own money back.

I got into a little Twitter debate earlier with a lady who was defensive of SM, to the point where she was almost in denial of the human rights offenses they’ve committed. She also believed that women in South Korea get paid fairly, but I digress. The original tweet that sparked the debate was alluding that the other artists at SM were ~happy as clams~ and resentful of the ones bringing lawsuits. I replied with my second thought, my first being, WTF RU SRS GRL PLZ. As if the other artists enjoy being broke and having to work like dogs just to take care of their families! Ha ha. Pardon my raucous laughter. The nature of the beast is hard work and loss of some personal freedoms, I get that, but SM exacerbates it to the nth degree. There’s no denying that, many “defectors” have said so themselves.

She then responded blithely by saying that the other artists could sue too, if they were so unhappy. Yeah, right. Filing lawsuits isn’t as easy as 1, 2, 3. It takes time, money, preparation for a shitstorm, and more money. I doubt SNSD has enough dough or more importantly, clout, to even begin thinking of fighting for reform. If anything, their best bet is to wait it out and see what happens with the other lawsuits. Maybe changes will be implemented that directly affect them, not to mention current & future practices at the company. Let’s say for a lark, that one or more of them did decide to sue. It’s not as if the scenarios are the same in any way, shape, form, or fashion. DBSK and Super Junior (and their respective litigious parties) have both been around for more than 5 years and have thriving careers in countries other than South Korea: DBSK = Japan, Hangeng = China. SNSD would have a bit more difficult time picking up their career where they left off in South Korea, I’d say. That’s not even delving into the issue of pay fairness. If the members of DBSK and Super Junior aren’t being paid enough, what in hell are the girls of SNSD making?? Let’s not kid ourselves, sexism is alive and well, and from what I hear, it’s doing particularly well in East Asia. I’d be willing to bet my own measly monies that all the female groups and solo artists in SM Town are paid less than their male counterparts for the same base contract. Of course, there are the other jobs they all do; radio shows, movies, etc., but at the root, I think it’s safe to say they are getting the shorter end of the stick.

To answer my original question, besides a few lone supporters on Twitter, SM Entertainment doesn’t have an ice cube’s chance in hell at salvaging the remnants of their public image. The question is, will that have any effect on their bottom line? Probably not.