BELIFT LAB has cautioned fans of ENHYPEN against an unauthorised paid event in the Philippines.

On 5 January, the South Korean entertainment company — a joint venture from CJ ENM and HYBE — sent out emails to the South Korean boy group's Weverse followers to inform them about the event, titled ENHAFESTIVAL: DAY 1.

According to BELIFT LAB, the organisers of ENHAFESTIVAL: DAY 1 — scheduled to take place in Manila on 7 January — had sold tickets to the event, which uses ENHYPEN's intellectual property (IP), without its approval. It also warned the organisers of legal repercussions for the infringement of intellectual property rights should they decide to proceed with the event. 

BELIFT LAB added that it will not be liable for any damage caused by the ENHAFESTIVAL: DAY 1 and that it remains committed to ensuring that its artists' rights are "fully protected".  

Read BELIFT LAB's full statement below:

"Hello.

This is BELIFT LAB.

We would like to thank all ENGENEs for your unwavering love towards ENHYPEN.

We would like to inform you about the paid event using ENHYPEN’s IP without our company’s authorization. We advise you not to get adversely affected by the event.

Event name: ENHAFESTIVAL: DAY 1

Date: Saturday, January 7, 2023

Location: MANILA

Official website: https://www.facebook.com/enhafestivalday1

This event is an unauthorized paid event that sold tickets by using the content of BELIFT LAB without our authorization. If the event host pushes ahead with this event, we will take legal actions for infringement of intellectual property.

We would like to take this opportunity to highlight that this is an unauthorized event being held without any discussions with our company. BELIFT LAB assumes no responsibility for any damage resulting from the event.

We will continue to work to ensure that the rights of our artists are fully protected.

Thank you."

On the same day, ENHAFESTIVAL: DAY 1's organisers took to Twitter to address the situation and announce that the event had been cancelled. In their statement, they explained that they had "explicitly stated that ENHAFESTIVAL: DAY 1 is a fan-organised event whose sole purpose is to gather ENGENEs and celebrate ENHYPEN together".

"We ought to send an event cancellation to all our attendees this morning, but unfortunately, we were caught in a blindside by the Weverse Notice to all registered members/subscribers, despite that we were told to keep this matter confidential and have been given until today to announce our decision," they wrote. 

They also clarified that the event is a non-profit one and stated that they had "submitted a full report on Event Proposals and Memorandums of Agreement with Event Partners" on 15 November 2022 as per BELIFT LAB's request. 

In addition, they stated that they had told BELIFT LAB's legal team that they were willing to rename the event to ALWAYS TOGETHER: The Festival as a compromise during a meeting in December. 

Before ending off, the organisers said that they will be reaching out to affected fans regarding refunds as well as any other concerns, apologised for any distress and confusion caused by the matter, and assured affected parties that their personal information would be protected.

[20230105]
ALWAYS TOGETHER: The Festival
EVENT NOTICE pic.twitter.com/2pphsOGDyX

— 📌 (@ENHAFESTIVAL) January 5, 2023