The BTS SWIM plagiarism lawsuit has officially come to an end as the American composers who alleged copyright infringement voluntarily dropped their legal claims against the group’s production team.
US Composers Voluntarily Withdraw Lawsuit After Four Months
According to US music publication Billboard, legal representation for composers Steve Cooper, John Sandler, and Graylin Johnson submitted documents to the court on the 4th, local time, requesting the complete withdrawal of the lawsuit. The dismissal comes roughly four months after the legal action was initially brought forward against the K-pop powerhouse.
However, court documents did not specify whether both parties reached a formal settlement, and neither side has released additional statements regarding the sudden withdrawal.
Background of the Copyright Infringement Claims Against Big Hit Music
Previously in July, the three composers filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in the US District Court for the Central District of California. The suit targeted Hive, Hive America, Big Hit Music, and producer Ryan Tedder, who were credited as the production team behind the track ‘SWIM.’ Members of BTS were notably not included as defendants in the case.
The plaintiffs claimed they had distributed their unreleased demo tracks to publishing groups and other music industry personnel starting in March of last year. They alleged that their music was shared with some members of the ‘SWIM’ production team during this process.
Furthermore, citing analysis from a musicologist they had hired, the plaintiffs argued there were significant similarities between the two tracks, asserting copyright infringement.
Big Hit Music Stood Firm on Independent Creation
At the time the lawsuit was filed, Big Hit Music strongly countered the allegations, stating that the claims were merely the unilateral assertions of the plaintiffs. The agency emphasized that ‘SWIM’ is an independent creation and declared its intention to take a firm stance against the legal proceedings.
‘SWIM’ serves as the title track for BTS’s fifth studio album, ‘ARIRANG,’ released in March. The song debuted at No. 1 on the US Billboard main singles chart ‘Hot 100,’ marking BTS’s seventh career chart-topping hit on the coveted list.
