J.Y. Park, the JYP Entertainment founder who co-chairs South Korea’s Presidential Committee on Popular Culture Exchange, defended his company’s handling of the FANOMENON trademark on October 6, 2026, one day before he is due to testify at a National Assembly audit. Speaking on SBS Radio’s Kim Tae-hyun’s Political Show, he also addressed reports that he received monthly expense payments despite describing the role as unpaid, according to SBS News.
No wrongdoing has been established. The questions center on whether a state-backed K-pop festival’s brand rights were handled appropriately, and Park’s testimony on October 7 is the next public test. (Note: this J.Y. Park is the JYP founder, not the GOT7 member also known as Jinyoung.)
What is FANOMENON, and why does the trademark matter?
FANOMENON is a large-scale K-pop event promoted by the presidential committee and major entertainment agencies. Seoul Economic Daily reports it is scheduled for December 2027, and the Korea Times has described it as a “Korean Coachella”-style project. WION, citing the lawmaker’s office, put the state-led budget at 15 billion won, roughly $11 million.
The dispute is about who holds the brand. Sports Kyunghyang reported on September 25 that JYP Entertainment filed 11 U.S. trademark applications on November 14, 2025, with the company as sole applicant. Each claims priority from a Korean filing dated October 2, 2025, and covers goods and services ranging from concerts and ticketing to apparel and light sticks.
The same outlet noted these are applications, not granted rights, and some are still under review at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The timing question raised by lawmakers
Sports Kyunghyang also reported that Park was on an official U.S. trip funded by government travel expenses from November 13 to 18, 2025. On November 14, it said, he met executives of Republic Records, the U.S. distributor for JYP girl group Geolset, the same day the filings were made.
The National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee had already asked the culture ministry in early September to exercise “caution” and keep official and personal or company schedules clearly separate, per the same report. The committee’s support team said Park personally paid for his private schedule and that processing followed the law.
Rep. Bae Hyun-jin of the People Power Party, who raised the trademark issue publicly on September 25, has demanded Park explain whether the arrangement amounted to preferential treatment, SBS reported.
Park’s defense: speed, cost and a promised transfer
On the radio, Park said registration is expensive: about 40 million won domestically and at least 600 to 700 million won overseas. He argued the brand had to be secured quickly once announced, or someone else could register it. He said he paid with his own money and intended to hand the rights over once a responsible party was named.
“If our company holds the trademark, who would cooperate?”
— J.Y. Park, via SBS News
The presidential committee said on September 24 that JYP’s overseas filings are an initial step and the rights will move to a dedicated corporation, according to Seoul Economic Daily. For the domestic mark, JYP first filed and then assigned 50% to the culture ministry, with the remaining share also to be transferred.
Park conceded to SBS that critics have a fair point: the dedicated corporation is itself a joint venture of four major agencies, so private firms would ultimately hold rights tied to a publicly funded project. He said the 50-50 split with the government and a three-clause public-interest contract with the ministry are the safeguards, and that next year’s state budget would go only to public-interest areas such as booths for small and medium-sized businesses.
The “unpaid” role and the 2 million won figure
Bae disclosed committee data on September 29 showing Park received about 2 million won a month in duty-performance expenses from last November through August, over 20 million won in total, SBS reported. Park had previously said he took no annual salary.
Park told SBS he initially did not know he was receiving the money and could return it. He added that if he declined, successors might face pressure to do the same, which he said makes public-private roles harder to fill. Whether the payments are expense reimbursements or compensation is likely to be a central question on October 7.
Why it matters and what to watch next
The case is a test of how South Korea structures public-private cultural projects. Park chose a private-led model for flexibility, and his critics argue that model needs cleaner rules on who owns the brand from day one.
Park chose to appear as a witness rather than a reference person, SBS reported, because witnesses testify under oath and can face perjury charges. Watch three things on October 7: whether lawmakers get a firm date for the trademark transfer, how the 2 million won payments are classified, and whether the culture ministry commits to new conflict-of-interest guidance. As of October 6, none of these has been confirmed.