Webtoon companies set out to catch pirates themselves

The increase in popularity of Korean webtoons and novels has not only led to the release of other webtoon-and webnovel-based content, like the movie "Omniscient Reader", that Bella reported on earlier, but it has also resulted in a surge of illegal online reproduction and distribution cases leaving creators disheartened.

Webtoon companies are now actively tracking down the individuals behind these acts.

Lee Eun-jin tells us more.

K-webtoons often feature uniquely Korean superheroes, with the characters ranging from being cute to quirky.

And many of the beloved K-dramas on various OTT platforms are actually based on webtoons.

But illegal distribution has become a serious issue, with new episodes often uploaded to piracy sites just 10 minutes after release.

This has forced webtoon companies to go after the pirates themselves, which led to the formation of an illegal distribution response team four years ago, the first in the industry.

They monitor for illegal content around the world with a hawk's eye.

They have since identified the operators behind more than 80% of targeted piracy sites.

They infiltrate illicit channels and use proprietary technology to gather scattered data online and determine the identities of those responsible.

"When we send a warning email with the message, 'We know who you are,' it's not long before they shut down the site or take down our content."

To date, over 800 million pieces of illegal content have been removed, and nearly 30 global distribution sites have been shut down.

The number of shutdown sites has increased significantly since the team's launch, but the process hasn't been easy.

"It's personally tough at times, especially when we receive insults from users of these illegal sites, sometimes bordering on defamation."

Last year alone, more than 400 million cases of illegal K-content distribution were reported overseas, with over 70% involving webtoons.

According to the most recent data collected for 2023, the estimated financial damage to the webtoon industry exceeds 440 billion won, that's approximately 320 million U.S. dollars.

This is not a problem that can be solved by industry efforts alone.

Such violations leave webtoon creators disheartened as others profit from their work.

This has led to growing calls for harsher penalties and for the establishment of a profit recovery system that redirects illicit gains back to the victims.

"Even when a webtoon is successful, it's not easy to just celebrate. It's heartbreaking—those who work hard get nothing, while others make money off their efforts."

With the new government aiming for a cultural market worth some 211 billion U.S. dollars.

.and the value of cultural exports to reach 35-point-2 billion U.S. dollars by 2030, illegal K-content distribution is expected to be a key issue moving forward.

Lee Eunjin, Arirang News.