JTBC Delays Payment of Variety Show Appearance Fees... "Deposits Being Processed in Line with Court Procedures"

[Financial News] JTBC, which has entered court-led rehabilitation proceedings, has seen delays in paying appearance fees for variety shows.
On the 25th, JTBC said through multiple media outlets, "Although there are some delays due to the rehabilitation process, deposits are being processed in line with court procedures."
Earlier, Edaily reported that appearance fees for some entertainers on JTBC programs such as "Knowing Bros," "Please Take Care of My Refrigerator," and "Divorce Camp" had not been paid this month. JTBC is said to have contacted each agency and asked for understanding.
In addition, production of the recently launched "Rediscovery of Love" has been suspended, drawing attention to whether the disruption was caused by the rehabilitation filings of JTBC and its group affiliates. However, the drama team drew a line, saying, "The production has been paused for a month due to revisions to improve the script and schedule adjustments in consideration of the rainy season."
JTBC failed to repay 20.6 billion won in asset-backed borrowing on the 12th and declared default. Since then, five major affiliates of the JoongAng Group, including JTBC, JoongAng Holdings, ContentreeJoongAng, Megabox Joongang, and Jungang P&I, have applied for corporate rehabilitation. At the same time, they have also requested Autonomous Restructuring Support (ARS).
Amid these circumstances, Japanese broadcaster TBS also reported that JTBC has not yet paid part of its broadcast rights fees to FIFA. The outlet said, "If the rights fees are not paid by the deadline, there are concerns that broadcast coverage of tournament matches in South Korea, which begin on the 29th, could be suspended."
JTBC, which secured exclusive broadcast rights for the Olympic Games from 2026 to 2032 and the FIFA World Cup from 2026 to 2030, finalized a joint broadcast agreement with KBS for the North and Central America World Cup in April.
In response, JTBC said, "We will broadcast all matches through the final of the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup without any disruption." It added, "We plan to deliver vivid coverage from the World Cup site through the South Korea national team’s matches and all the way to the final of the tournament, so we ask viewers not to be misled by false information."
[email protected] Ahn Ga-eul Reporter