"The Mangbang Beach BTS Sculpture Is Disappearing: 'We Need to Go Quickly and Take Photos'"

BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan) related sculptures will be removed from Maengbang Beach in Samcheok City, Gangwon Province, which became famous as the 'BTS Beach' after BTS shot their album jacket there. On the 11th, Samcheok City announced that the sculptures installed at the BTS photo zone on Maengbang Beach are scheduled to be dismantled within this month.

This decision follows the recent statement from BTS's agency, Big Hit Music, which said, "Requests to use the portraits and names of our artists in street creation projects, sculptures, murals, etc., promoted by government ministries or local governments, are not permitted." They added, "Installing sculptures without our permission constitutes an infringement of the artists' intellectual property rights (IP)."

BTS, who became famous for the album jacket photoshoot at Maengbang Beach in Samcheok, Gangwon, known as 'BTS Beach,' will have BTS-related sculptures removed. On the 11th, Samcheok City announced that the sculptures installed at the BTS photo zone on Maengbang Beach are scheduled to be dismantled within this month.
[Photo by BigHit Music]

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Samcheok City attempted to negotiate with the agency but was unsuccessful. Maengbang Beach is where BTS shot the album jacket for their representative song "Butter," which topped the US Billboard Hot 100 main singles chart. In 2021, Samcheok City restored the parasols, sunbeds, beach volleyball facilities, surfboards, and other elements from the cover concept at Maengbang Beach, turning it into the 'BTS Beach,' a major tourist attraction.

Since last October, Samcheok City has invested about 100 million KRW in maintaining and repairing the 'BTS Beach,' including spending 50 million KRW to refurbish the BTS photo zone. However, Big Hit Music did not make exceptions for the 'BTS Beach,' citing concerns such as potential violations of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, management difficulties, and negative impacts on the artists' image if damaged. Previously, when Gwangju Buk-gu Office discussed creating a 'J-Hope Street' named after BTS member J-Hope from Gwangju, the plan was also canceled.

Recently, Big Hit Music has taken a strong stance against unauthorized use of BTS's IP. Earlier, they sent a warning letter regarding the use of BTS group and member names and the term "official" in the community section of the comfort letter application (app) "The Camp." In response, The Camp deleted all such expressions and added a disclaimer that it is not an official Big Hit Music account. Big Hit Music stated, "If we receive reports or inquiries about unauthorized use of artist IP, we will respond according to our principles."

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