Square Enix wins copyright infringement case against Fantom

Square Enix Co., Ltd., recently announced the results of its copyright infringement case against Korean pop singer Ivy’s music video Temptation Sonata that aired in February 2007. The video was produced by HONG Jeong-ho and the Fantom Entertainment Group (a talent agency).

The Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of Square Enix and ordered the talent agency and Jeong-ho to pay damages up to 300 million Korean Won (approx. $10,900 in U.S. dollars) for plagiarizing a fight scene between Tifa and Loz from the movie Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children in their music video without Square Enix’s permission.

The live-action sequence is so close to the CGI version of the fight scene it was no mistaken where Jeong-ho got his inspiration from, too bad he didn’t ask for permission first as I thought this was one of her better videos. Actually it’s better than her other videos.

Below is a comparison of the music video and the fight scene in Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children. First is Temptation Sonata by Ivy.

Warning: Both videos contains intense fantasy fighting action.

This is the original fight scene between Tifa and Loz in Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children:

In the press release, Square Enix’s general counsel Yasuhiko Hasegawa warns others who may try to plagiarize any other Final Fantasy scenes without permission in the future. From the Press Release…

“..we appreciate that the deliberate maliciousness of this act has been recognized in a public forum. In addition, the amount of damages awarded us in this case is the largest the courts in South Korea have ever awarded in cases infringing one single work of art, and we also appreciate that the severity of the damage caused to the company by this infringement has been acknowledged… Square Enix will continue to take decisive action against any infringements upon the Company’s intellectual property, recognizing that this property is one of our most crucial resources.”

Read [Press Release from Square Enix] Also Read [PSP Updates] Also Read [Hollywood Reporter]