Kakao Entertainment Strengthens Welfare for Webtoon and Web Novel Creators

Announcement of Revised Contract for Creators
Formalizing Rights to Hiatus and Volume per Serialized Episode

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] Kakao Entertainment announced on the 31st a contract amendment to strengthen the welfare and health rights of webtoon and web novel creators.

The main point is to explicitly include rights related to ‘creator welfare enhancement,’ such as the right to take breaks and workload, in the contract starting February 1, targeting all creators who regularly serialize works on Kakao Entertainment. Kakao Entertainment plans to prepare various practical improvement measures for creators this year, beginning with the contract amendment process.

This contract amendment was made in line with implementing the ‘Win-Win Agreement’ announced in December last year by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism-led ‘Webtoon Win-Win Council.’ Kakao Entertainment empathized with the need for better improvements regarding creators’ health and welfare. Reflecting Article 7 ‘Enhancement of Creator Welfare’ of the Win-Win Agreement faithfully, the contract newly establishes a ‘creator welfare enhancement’ clause and revises clauses related to ‘the right to take breaks’ and ‘workload.’

Previously, Kakao Entertainment allowed creators to take breaks as much as they wanted upon discussion when requesting a break due to personal circumstances. This amendment aims to actively protect creators’ health and welfare by clearly stating creators’ right to take breaks in the contract.

The revised contract explicitly states for both webtoons and web novels that “additional breaks may be set through mutual consultation for the welfare of creators.” Additionally, for webtoons, a specific phrase guaranteeing “two break rights per 40 episodes” is included. Forty episodes correspond to about one year, considering a typical weekly serialization.

The clause regarding ‘per-episode serialization workload’ is also revised. Both webtoons and web novels add the content that “excessive serialization workload will not be demanded to avoid burdening the creator.” Although Kakao Entertainment did not impose practical limits on serialization workload before, this wording was added to alleviate the burden felt by creators amid intensified competition and to create a more stable creative environment.

For webtoons, when the contract specifies the minimum number of panels per episode, the minimum number is adjusted from the existing 60 panels to 50 panels per episode. Kakao Entertainment has never actually managed or penalized cases based on the specified panel count contracts, but this measure is to further reduce the burden.

After the contract amendment, Kakao Entertainment will actively reflect any additional necessary parts when the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announces the ‘standard contract’ in the future. In addition to this contract amendment work, Kakao Entertainment plans to faithfully implement the Win-Win Agreement and continuously prepare improvement plans for creators’ rights through active discussions with creators, related parties, and the government.

Hwang Hyun-soo, Head of Kakao Entertainment’s Story Division, said, “As a leading company in the content industry, Kakao Entertainment has been considering improvement measures through the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Webtoon Win-Win Council along with the ‘creator ecosystem improvement plan’ we have independently implemented to establish a sustainable ecosystem. Starting with this contract amendment work, we will prepare various practical improvement measures for creators through continuous discussions with creators, the government, and related parties this year.”