It was previously reported that INFINITE's Sungjong has formally announced the termination of his exclusive contract with SPK Entertainment. In an official statement released on January 16, Sungjong revealed that he had conveyed his decision to terminate the contract to the agency, a move that transpired in late December 2023.

Sungjong has now released a more detailed reasoning for taking this significant step, citing a lack of essential support from SPK Entertainment since August 2022, right after the contract was initially signed. This absence of support encompassed critical aspects such as opportunities for broadcast appearances, fan meetings, and album releases. Additionally, he alleged that the agency had failed to fulfill financial commitments, including neglecting to provide the promised down payment and overlooking reimbursements for canceled fan meetings.

Furthermore, Sungjong disclosed that SPK Entertainment had not supplied any financial settlement data and had neglected to pay the settlement amounts owed for various activities related to Infinite, including full-member group engagements and the Asian tour in the previous year.

In early December 2023, Sungjong took the step of requesting corrective action for the contract violation by sending a certificate of contents through legal representation. However, he claimed that the agency evaded addressing the issue, ultimately leading to his decision to terminate the exclusive contract.

Sungjong expressed his disappointment, stating that the trust between him and SPK Entertainment had been irrevocably damaged. Consequently, he announced plans to pursue formal legal action against the agency with the assistance of a law firm in the near future.

Please see below for the full official statement from Sungjong.

"Hello, this is Lee Sungjong.

First of all, I would like to apologize for causing concern to the fans who support and love me.

I signed an exclusive contract with SPK Entertainment in August 2022. At the time, the agency said they would provide full support for my activities, and I signed a contract with faith in this promise.

However, contrary to the initial promise, I did not receive proper support from SPK Entertainment immediately after signing the contract for broadcast appearances, fan meetings, or album releases, nor did I receive the promised deposit. I continued to ask for a solution to the refund issue for the canceled fan meeting, but was turned away.

Despite the company's lack of support, I did my best to maintain good faith with the company. In March 2023, I released the single 'The One' as a solo singer and also went on his first European tour. Also, in July of last year, INFINITE released '13egin' as a complete group and held an Asian tour 'COMEBACK AGAIN'. However, the company was busy putting it off day after day without providing settlement data or paying the settlement fee for the activity.

After several months of trying to negotiate various issues regarding the problematic situation, I finally sent a certification of contents through a law firm in early December 2023 and requested correction for the violation of the contract. However, SPK Entertainment simply avoided answering, and as a result, we had no choice but to notify SPK Entertainment of the termination of our exclusive contract in late December 2023.

I tried to resolve this situation amicably through dialogue, separate from the notice of termination of the exclusive contract, but SPK Entertainment ignored even this, and last week officially notified me that they had no intention of discussing it.

I continued to hope to resolve the situation through dialogue with the company, but now that my relationship of trust with SPK Entertainment has broken down, I plan to take formal legal action through a law firm as soon as possible.

Once again, I am sorry to inform my fans who love and support me with unfortunate news. I would like to thank those who encourage me."