How the boy band BTS is using IP to build its legacy

• Author: Ana Clara Ribeiro
• Position: Intellectual Property attorney, Curitiba, Brazil

The boy band BTS is one of the most successful groups of all time. The band’s ability to leverage its IP rights to strengthen it brand, develop its creative potential and diversify income streams is striking. (Photo: Sipa USA / Alamy Stock Photo)

Today, they perform and win music awards around the world with songs in Korean and English (with selected recordings in Japanese). BTS has addressed the United Nations General Assembly on two occasions, with whom they launched Love Myself, a powerful anti-bullying campaign. BTS has become an economic force in the Republic of Korea, boosting tourism and interest in Korean fashion, food, movies and TV programs. A study by the Korean Culture and Tourism Institute estimates that BTS is contributing around USD 5 billion to the domestic economy.

There are many layers to BTS’s artistry and success. Their ability to connect emotionally with their fans is second-to-none. The passion and dedication of the group’s fans, known as the ARMY, goes well beyond financial support; they are active and passionate promoters of BTS. The band’s ability to leverage its intellectual property rights to strengthen its brand, develop its creative potential and diversify income streams is also striking.

BTS is expanding its fan base by creating a fun-filled universe of music and content that offers fans multiple ways to engage. Music is their bread and butter, but the band is expanding its IP asset portfolio and branching into other areas of entertainment. HYBE, the Republic of Korea’s leading entertainment management agency, manages the group and its IP. Music, entertainment and education make up the legacy BTS is building. Effective IP management underpins these activities.

Copyright

Copyright is a key IP right for musicians. It protects the most important elements of a musician's career: their musical compositions, performance and sound recordings. Copyright-protected musical compositions can generate significant revenues from performance royalties, mechanical royalties (generated each time a composition is reproduced), synchronization (e.g., when a song is played in a movie, TV show or advertisement), and other publishing rights.

At least three of the band’s members - SUGA, RM, and j-hope – have become full members of the prestigious Korean Music Copyright Association (KOMCA) thanks to the popularity of their work.

Each member of BTS has songwriting credits. Their music is filled with personal references and creative wordplay and resonates with fans. This enables them to create a strong emotional connection with their fans, and interconnections among their fan base, as the fans engage in discussions about the meaning of their lyrics and how to interpret and translate them.

In 2020 and 2021, BTS topped the recording industry’s Global Recording Artist chart, which ranks the world’s best-selling acts according to physical and digital...