Dear Sirs,
We are loyal fans of Mr. Jo Hyun Jae and we are writing to you to appeal for more news and photos of him.
Ever since Mr. Jo entered the army in August 2008, there has been very little news and only a few messages from him. Except for a couple of photos released while he was in training, there has been nothing.
We cannot read Korean or Japanese, so our source of news is even more scant. We know the Korean fan clubs CAFE and EVER are doing a good job. What we don't understand is this: Why is the Official Jo Hyun Jae Fan Club in Japan? Do you know how difficult it is to join this official fan club if you are not Japanese? Almost impossible! Don't you want more people to join this official fan club?
You must realize Mr. Jo is no longer just a Korean actor -- he has transcended Korea. He has become an international star. Do you know how popular he is in South-East Asia (not to mention China)? (in the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc.) Do you know how frustrating it is for fans there not to be able to understand what's going on? Mr. Jo has also conquered North America and even parts of Europe and Central Asia. These fans can only read English, but there is hardly any website that caters for them.
And when we try to fill that void, we find our hands are tied. We cannot share what we read on the Official JHJ Fan Club website with our readers. Why don't you release the photos taken on his birthday to the Korean fan clubs? Why don't you allow the photos to be made public? What is the harm of letting fans see the latest photos? Everybody is dying for a glimpse of Mr. Jo. Do you think you are protecting him? We are sure you know the English saying: "Out of sight, out of mind." Fans are very fickle and handsome young actors emerge on the Korean entertainment scene every day. Fans switch loyalties if they are not satisfied. There are still more than 390 days to go. How do you expect to keep the fans?
Apparently only members of the Official JHJ Fan Club who have paid the membership fee are allowed to see the photos. Then what about the MANY, MANY MORE fans all over the world who care about Mr. Jo but who are not, cannot be, or do not want to be members? Are you in effect saying to them they do not count? This is not fair: Mr. Jo belongs to all of us, not just to a few thousand fan club members.
Apart from the photos, there are the CDs, DVDs, calendars, photo albums, etc. -- Mr. Jo's souvenirs. They can only be obtained through the Korean or Japanese fan clubs. If you have no connections, too bad. Doesn't it make more business sense to sell these publicly, say, on the internet? In that case, even overseas fans can buy them online. Don't you think they will sell better this way? We have heard complaints from fans who find the hurdles too much. As Mr. Jo's management company, shouldn't you make it easier for his fans?
We are sure you are planning something special for Mr. Jo when he finishes his military duties. How he returns to the Korean entertainment scene is very important: whether he can make a career breakthrough after a two-year hiatus. He needs a good role, a good script. So many of his fans are waiting; so many people will be watching. We are counting on you to ensure that Mr. Jo's future will be even more splendid than his past or present.
Meanwhile, we appeal to you to bear in mind our interests. Everything is global now, including your superstar. For the sake of all Mr. Jo's fans, in any part of the world, please feed us as much information and news as possible in these lean times, so we won't starve to death while waiting for him to return from the army. Thank you!
Yours sincerely,
M & M
(representing the silent majority)
P.S. Our editor is in Los Angeles at the moment and she has just reported that "Seo Dong Yo" is showing on a Vietnamese TV channel, dubbed in Vietnamese with Chinese subtitles. Isn't that great? Doesn't that prove to you just how far-reaching Jo Hyun Jae's popularity is among different peoples all over the world?
We are loyal fans of Mr. Jo Hyun Jae and we are writing to you to appeal for more news and photos of him.
Ever since Mr. Jo entered the army in August 2008, there has been very little news and only a few messages from him. Except for a couple of photos released while he was in training, there has been nothing.
We cannot read Korean or Japanese, so our source of news is even more scant. We know the Korean fan clubs CAFE and EVER are doing a good job. What we don't understand is this: Why is the Official Jo Hyun Jae Fan Club in Japan? Do you know how difficult it is to join this official fan club if you are not Japanese? Almost impossible! Don't you want more people to join this official fan club?
You must realize Mr. Jo is no longer just a Korean actor -- he has transcended Korea. He has become an international star. Do you know how popular he is in South-East Asia (not to mention China)? (in the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc.) Do you know how frustrating it is for fans there not to be able to understand what's going on? Mr. Jo has also conquered North America and even parts of Europe and Central Asia. These fans can only read English, but there is hardly any website that caters for them.
And when we try to fill that void, we find our hands are tied. We cannot share what we read on the Official JHJ Fan Club website with our readers. Why don't you release the photos taken on his birthday to the Korean fan clubs? Why don't you allow the photos to be made public? What is the harm of letting fans see the latest photos? Everybody is dying for a glimpse of Mr. Jo. Do you think you are protecting him? We are sure you know the English saying: "Out of sight, out of mind." Fans are very fickle and handsome young actors emerge on the Korean entertainment scene every day. Fans switch loyalties if they are not satisfied. There are still more than 390 days to go. How do you expect to keep the fans?
Apparently only members of the Official JHJ Fan Club who have paid the membership fee are allowed to see the photos. Then what about the MANY, MANY MORE fans all over the world who care about Mr. Jo but who are not, cannot be, or do not want to be members? Are you in effect saying to them they do not count? This is not fair: Mr. Jo belongs to all of us, not just to a few thousand fan club members.
Apart from the photos, there are the CDs, DVDs, calendars, photo albums, etc. -- Mr. Jo's souvenirs. They can only be obtained through the Korean or Japanese fan clubs. If you have no connections, too bad. Doesn't it make more business sense to sell these publicly, say, on the internet? In that case, even overseas fans can buy them online. Don't you think they will sell better this way? We have heard complaints from fans who find the hurdles too much. As Mr. Jo's management company, shouldn't you make it easier for his fans?
We are sure you are planning something special for Mr. Jo when he finishes his military duties. How he returns to the Korean entertainment scene is very important: whether he can make a career breakthrough after a two-year hiatus. He needs a good role, a good script. So many of his fans are waiting; so many people will be watching. We are counting on you to ensure that Mr. Jo's future will be even more splendid than his past or present.
Meanwhile, we appeal to you to bear in mind our interests. Everything is global now, including your superstar. For the sake of all Mr. Jo's fans, in any part of the world, please feed us as much information and news as possible in these lean times, so we won't starve to death while waiting for him to return from the army. Thank you!
Yours sincerely,
M & M
(representing the silent majority)
P.S. Our editor is in Los Angeles at the moment and she has just reported that "Seo Dong Yo" is showing on a Vietnamese TV channel, dubbed in Vietnamese with Chinese subtitles. Isn't that great? Doesn't that prove to you just how far-reaching Jo Hyun Jae's popularity is among different peoples all over the world?
Bravo, this open letter says it all. I have nothing but praises to both of you M & M.
ReplyDeleteAnd I am one of the "MANY, MANY MORE global fans" of Hyunjae who depends only on this blog for any updates and current news. I hope that StarNHit would hear our plea and be considerate enough to know that one of their valuable star is still and will always be a superstar and all they have to do is to reach out to all JHJ fans worldwide. Why limit Hyunjae potential only in Asia for that matter, whereas he has the ability to widen his horizon in North America, Europe and Latin America. Guess JHJ charm is truly irresistible, his absence makes his fans want for more.
Great job ! Hope JHJ's company will know about this open letter otherwise this effort is just futile. How can we ensure that this message will surely get to them ? Or should this get translated into Korean and send to JHJ at the army camp as well ?
ReplyDeleteThis letter speaks for so many of us , thank you!
Good for you! I used to be one of the silent majority too, until I realize I must make myself heard. Star n Hit, please think of us too. We love Jo Hyun Jae as much as the Korean or Japanese fans, maybe more, because it's harder for us.
ReplyDeleteEvery two weeks or so, we send selections from this blog to Jo Hyun-Jae. We will certainly include this one. We have also sent some articles to Star n Hit when we first started this blog. We will make sure they get this. Many thanks to those of you who support us! We have been dying to write this letter, even if it makes us persona non grata, again! (but it's always less painful the second time.)
ReplyDeleteMost of Korean cannot understand such a long letter in English. Is it better to send a Korean version to the company?
ReplyDeleteI really want the company to post more photos and information of JHJ. JHJ must have a strong fans base when he returns.
JHJ is happy for having so many fans from all over the world, but the management company only counts the fans who can contribute to the sales volume. The company just considers the short term benefit from JHJ.
For the benefit of the company, the set up of the official fan club in Japan is understood. Japanese are willing to pay for the souvenirs and follow regulations. They don't upload the photos and videos to the public.
If fans can reach the photos and videos of JHJ free of charge, who will join the official fan club and pay for it?
Nowadays, it is easy to buy the souvenirs of JHJ through the internet. I've bought most of the souvenirs of JHJ through the website in China and Hong Kong. They can buy the souvenirs for the fans collectively. We, fans, can save the handling cost too. Frankly speaking, for the benefit of JHJ and his company, I don't upload any of them.
The company must make a balance between the fans base of JHJ and the short term benefit of the company.
CORRECTION -- It is IMPOSSIBLE to buy JHJ souvenirs on the internet! You can ONLY buy them through the fan clubs. If you cannot read Korean, Japanese, or Chinese, you tell me how you can get the JHJ souvenirs. It may surprise you that SOME fan clubs make a profit from these sales. We only found this out recently when we managed to buy these souvenirs ourselves through our connection. To be able to buy something on the internet means ANYONE can do so (with or without fan club affiliation.) All you need is a credit card. We suggested to Star n Hit to put the JHJ souvenirs on, say, AMAZON or YESASIA, but we got the cold shoulder. How they do business is their prerogative, but they should not forget who their clients really are. I know the Japanese fans DO NOT upload JHJ photos and videos on the internet. But you and we both know such photos and videos are ON THE INTERNET (only restricted.) You just pay their fan club fees (NOT the OFFICIAL FAN CLUB.) As long as there are things like this happening, we feel very strongly that it is NOT FAIR to other JHJ fans who love him but are shut out for being law-abiding.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Michelle, thank you for your suggestion of getting this letter translated into Korean. We'll see if this can be done. I know the CEO of Star n Hit can understand English. I've seen him once and spoken one sentence to him: "Take good care of Hyun-Jae." (This was on 8/6/08, the day after JHJ entered the army.) And he replied: "I will." So if he wants to understand our letter, he can.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteP.S. The management company must earn enough revenue to sustain the promotion programmes for JHJ, such as the production fo CD and DVD.
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ReplyDeleteWe do not advertise for other sites and we do not promote sales on this site.
ReplyDeleteYou've said what needed to be said. I am with you.
ReplyDeleteI don't mean to advertise the websites. I just want to say if you want to buy the souvenirs of JHJ, you can buy them. Don't just rely on the photos and videos uploaded.
ReplyDeleteI don't care the management company, but I care whether the company has enough money to proceed some promotion programmes.
Thank you, Michelle! Star N Hit is a commercial enterprise and, as such, it must have its own business objectives and plans. All we care about, like you, is that it properly manages JHJ's affairs and ensures that his fans have access to news and information so he is not forgotten, especially in the remaining 390 days or so when he is still in the army.
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