Former EXO Member Tao’s Disastrous Giveaway Sparks Backlash
A former member of the SM Entertainment boy group EXO found himself in hot water after a giveaway gone wrong. Fans who were angered by the fine print of the giveaway reportedly called his integrity into question.
Tao (also known as Huang Zitao) was one of EXO’s debut members. After leaving the group, the Chinese singer-songwriter and rapper made his solo debut in China, both as a singer and an actor. He made headlines back in December after announcing his marriage to actress and former SM Entertainment trainee Xu Yiyang.
In January, Tao announced that he would be giving away cars to winners selected from his fanbase. A total of twenty winners were chosen for the prize: a Baojun electric car valued at approximately 120,000 yuan (about $16,700 USD).
However, fans’ initial excitement fizzled out into disappointment after receiving additional details. Instead of owning the cars indefinitely, the winners would actually only be given ownership of the cars for five years. Since the news broke, over four million fans have reportedly unfollowed Tao on social media.
In a livestream on January 14, Tao addressed the controversy and accusation, stating that he has a “clear conscience” and that his giveaway abided by all legal stipulations and social media platform rules. Since his livestreaming giveaway was considered a sales activity by law, Tao said, the prize values couldn’t exceed 50,000 yuan (approximately $6,960 USD). In other words, he could give away a 5-year ownership valued at 50,000 yuan or less, but he could not give away full ownership to the 120,000 yuan cars.
We hope you can use this car for a long period and, meanwhile, the cost of using it is subject to the 50,000 yuan requirement.
— Tao
Half of the giveaway’s cars were reportedly sponsored by Baojun, while the rest were personally purchased by Tao.
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