The Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Copyright Protection Agency (KCPA) have been recruiting participating companies and implementing agencies for its ‘Customized Overseas Copyright Voucher Support Project.’
The Voucher Project is a program that supports overseas copyright infringement issues through cooperation between the Protection Agency and implementing agencies. Participating companies and individuals can utilize specialized services such as legal litigation support, illegal distribution monitoring, and infringement investigation through vouchers.
In February 2024, KCPA supported the litigation process against the US version of Nunu TV, ‘Kokoa TV’, which illegally copied content from K-content OTT platform Wavve, through the voucher project, and closed the site, thereby preventing copyright infringement damages worth hundreds of billions of won. In addition, in November, it closed a total of six illegal streaming sites, including Goplay and TV25, contributing to the protection of the domestic content industry.
Expanded project budget
The total budget for this year’s voucher project has been expanded to KRW 880 million (equivalent to about US$600,000), up from KRW 400 million (about US$272,000) in 2024, to allow more companies and individuals to benefit. In addition, the self-payment ratio has been adjusted from the existing 30-50% to 5-30%, and the practical support system has been strengthened by awarding extra points to small and medium-sized enterprises (including individual creators and small businesses).
This year, a ‘Joint Response Initiative’ system has been established to support up to KRW 150 million (about US$102,000) in civil, criminal, and administrative litigation costs when three or more companies or individuals who have suffered the same copyright infringement overseas jointly file a lawsuit. This is an innovative measure that enables collective response to large-scale infringement cases on overseas platforms.
The support services of the voucher project are largely divided into ① illegal distribution monitoring (monitoring/evidence collection), ② infringement impact analysis (issuance of appraisal report), ③ legal procedure support (civil/criminal/administrative litigation), and ④ establishment of a preemptive prevention strategy (consulting). The individual support limit is KRW 100 million, and KRW 150 million in joint response.
Further recruiting
In addition, the voucher project implementation agency is also recruiting. The implementation agency is selected as a legal, security, or technology-related corporation or organization that can provide specialized services such as copyright infringement investigation, legal litigation support, and digital copyright monitoring. The implementing agency will be responsible for the overall operation of the support project and will provide the services required by the participating companies.
Original press release with contact details
Korea Copyright Protection Agency to support overseas copyright infringement response up to 150 million Won. Press release. April 2, 2025. Korea Copyright Protection Agency (KCPA)
Why it matters
Director Park Jeong-ryeol of the Korea Copyright Protection Agency stated, “We will expand support so that copyright holders can actively respond to copyright infringements that may occur overseas through the voucher project.”
