Boy Band Breakup?

TVXQ, one of the most popular boy bands in all of Asia, is on the verge of breaking up at the peak of their fame, the Korea Times reported Aug. 2.

Three members of the quintet have submitted to the Seoul Central District Court an application for provisional disposition to terminate their contract with their management company SM Entertainment.

An SM representative confirmed the three members’ request to Yonhap news agency and added that the company was “very surprised and regretful, but [we] are trying our best to understand the situation.”

Rumors of dissension in the group have circulated for about a month.

Hero, Mickey and Xiah apparently have private business interests that could conflict with their responsibilities for SM.

Meanwhile, the remaining two members, Max and U-Know, are pursuing TV acting careers in addition to the work with the group.

A lawyer involved with the case said these kinds of conflicts of interest are “typical” in the entertainment industry, but another unidentified source added that such rifts are always difficult to fix, especially with a group that is basically split into two sides with the management company unsure how to satisfy everyone.

For the time being, the group is fulfilling its obligations. On Aug. 1, they appeared at the A-Nation concert in Japan for their Japanese record company Avex.

TVXQ has already racked up six No. 1 singles in Japan and recently played Tokyo Dome all by themselves. The group also has concerts and other events lined up for the rest of the month.