(OSEN)

Boy group Block B’s agency is looking into taking legal action against the cosmetic company Beyond for violation of group member Zico’s publicity rights, according to local media outlets.

The problem started more than a year ago, when Beyond started using Zico’s name to advertise a product. The product, originally named “aqua tinted rouge,” was nicknamed “Zico tint” after a rumor spread online that it resembled Zico’s lip color.

(Screenshot of Beyond's Offical Website)

Beyond soon began to use the term “Block B Zico’s lip” in their online store. Many customers purchased the product thinking that the celebrity actually used it, and it rapidly became one of Beyond’s best-selling items.

However, makeup artists in the entertainment industry confirmed that Zico was using products from other cosmetic companies, not Beyond.

Block B’s agency Seven Seasons Entertainment soon realized that Zico’s name was being used without his or the agency’s consent. It argued that Beyond’s marketing strategy was illegitimate and unjust. Thus the agency is discussing ways to tackle the problem through a lawsuit.

(OSEN)

Legal actions would shed further light on the issue of celebrities’ publicity rights, which were long ignored until Miss A’s Suzy filed a lawsuit against a cosmetic company for using the girl group member’s name to promote a product without permission.

By Kim Ji-young (christinekim@heraldcorp.com)