Coupang has won a legal battle over the director's cut service of the movie 'Hansan: Rising Dragon' (directed by Kim Han-min).

On the 21st, the 63rd Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of Coupang in a lawsuit for a refund of royalties filed against Lotte Cultureworks.

Coupang signed a service contract with distributor Lotte Cultureworks on August 8, 2022. Out of the total permanent service fee of 12.5 billion won, Coupang paid the first installment of 5 billion won.

However, the dispute began in November of the same year with the release of the director's cut 'Hansan Redux'. Lotte Cultureworks provided an exclusive service license for the director's cut to Netflix a month later.

At that time, Coupang claimed, "The director's cut 'Hansan Redux' cannot be considered a separate work from the movie" and argued that "providing the movie to a competing OTT service like Netflix constitutes a serious contract violation."

Lotte Cultureworks refuted by stating, "The director's cut is a derivative work with added new elements," and argued that "all rights related to its creation belong to the defendant. There is no obligation to return the royalties."

The court sided with Coupang. The panel stated, "The movie in this case qualifies as a reproduction," and remarked that "Lotte Cultureworks seriously violated the licensing contract by providing the director's cut to Netflix."

They added, "The director's cut adds about 21 minutes of footage compared to the original movie," but noted "no significant changes in the progression, main events, character depiction, atmosphere, or conclusion of the work."

'Hansan: Rising Dragon' has a runtime of 129 minutes. The director's cut adds 21 minutes. Upon verification, it was found that the actually new footage is 13 minutes, with the remaining 7 minutes being extended edits of existing scenes.

As a result, Lotte Cultureworks must return the full installment of 5 billion won (excluding VAT) to Coupang. Additionally, they must pay delinquency damages calculated at an annual rate of 12% from February 10 until the payment is completed.

Lotte Cultureworks appealed on the 18th. A representative stated, "The director's cut is a derivative work created with new creativity added," and expressed disagreement with the court's decision labeling it as merely a reproduction.

<Photo Source=Movie 'Hansan Redux' Poster>