Korean company sued for plagiarizing FF7: Advent Children

They say that imitation is a form of flattery. But sometimes, imitation can unleash on you a Beat Rush + Somersault + Water Kick + Meteodrive combo (and very well into Final Heaven too). Last March, Square Enix filed a law suit against Korean media company Fantom Entertainment Group for releasing a music video that’s been ruled to have plagiarized FF7: Advent Children. Exhibit A, if you please: Korean pop singer Ivy’s music video for her song, “Temptation of Sonata”. Read more to see the video and for more details.

They say that imitation is a form of flattery. But sometimes, imitation can unleash on you a Beat Rush + Somersault + Water Kick + Meteodrive combo (and very well into Final Heaven too).

Last March, Square Enix filed a law suit against Korean media company Fantom Entertainment Group for releasing a music video that infringed on copyright material. Exhibit A, if you please: Korean pop singer Ivy’s music video for her song, “Temptation of Sonata”. Check it out:

As ruled by the judge, this music video “illegally used 80% of the storyline, setting, characters and their styles of dress and their demeanors from the Japanese video game Final Fantasy 7.” Well, not FF7 per se, but to be more specific, a scene from Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children.

The music video recreates the epic battle between Tifa and Loz from the movie. And it does it quite well too – we’ll give it that. However, the fine line between imitation and outright plagiarism has been crossed.

With this ruling, the court fines Fantom with US$ 10,900, while Lee Han-woo (Fantom director) and Hong Jeong-ho (director of the music video) each get a US$ 6,500 penalty charge. To further deter future cases like this, Yasuhiko Hasegawa, General Counsel for Square Enix, comments:

This judgment by the Seoul Central District Court is stringent in comparison to other copyright infringement cases in South Korea, and we appreciate that the maliciousness of this infringement has been recognized in a public forum. Square Enix will continue to take decisive action against any infringements upon the company’s intellectual property, recognizing that this property is one of our most crucial resources.