Excluded from the Fixed Book Price System for Webtoons and Web Novels

Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Announces 5 Key Directions for Regulatory Innovation
Urban Guesthouses Now Accessible to Domestic Tourists
New Casino Games Allowed for Pilot Operation

Webtoons and web novels are excluded from the application of the Book Price Stabilization System, and regulations related to the export of artworks will be significantly improved.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 4th, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism chaired a meeting on regulatory innovation for the promotion of the culture, sports, and tourism industries at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Seoul branch, announcing five basic directions containing these contents. Based on suggestions gathered through meetings and field visits since last October, 20 key tasks were specified. Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Yoon In-chon stated, "Since my inauguration, I have heard more than 150 vivid voices from the field demanding regulatory innovation," adding, "From now on, I will consider the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as the 'Ministry of Cultural Industry' and boldly and swiftly innovate regulations that hinder growth and leap forward."

The basic directions are divided into regulatory innovation in new industries, export and investment creation, alleviation of difficulties for small business owners and companies, revitalization of regional culture and tourism, and life-oriented regulatory innovation. First Vice Minister Jeon Byung-geuk will operate a dedicated reform task force (TF) and check the progress of the tasks quarterly. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official said, "We plan to boldly and swiftly improve key tasks that the public and industry can feel."

Among regulatory innovations in new industries, the revision of the 'Publishing Culture Industry Promotion Act' stands out the most. Webtoons and web novels will be excluded from the Book Price Stabilization System to support the growth of related industries. The Book Price Stabilization System is a system that requires publications to display fixed prices and allows sales with discounts within 15% of the fixed price to consumers. Webtoons and web novels, which have different production and distribution structures from existing publications, have faced many difficulties due to the uniform application of the Book Price Stabilization System. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official explained, "Excluding them from the application will enable various pricing policies suitable for the characteristics of the content, revitalizing related industries and allowing readers to enjoy content at more affordable prices."

Songpa-gu Urban Homestay Family Guest

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will institutionalize urban homestays (shared accommodations) currently allowed only for foreigners so that domestic residents can also use them. Additionally, private autonomy in content rating will be greatly expanded, and online video service (OTT) self-rating operators will be required to review not only the main content but also trailers. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official said, "We plan to expand the authority of game self-rating operators to classify games rated 'Not for Youth' as well," adding, "Game rating criteria will also be improved to align with 'global standards.'"

Regulatory innovation measures for export and investment creation include allowing trial operation of new casino games (within six months). Current laws limit casino business types to eighteen categories specified in the Enforcement Rules of the Tourism Promotion Act. Therefore, even if new games are developed, there was no way to verify their excellence. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official said, "Through regulatory relaxation, casino game content will diversify, and an export base is expected to be established."

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will also improve regulations related to artwork exports. Currently, artworks created over 50 years ago are classified as potential general movable cultural heritage and cannot be exported. In the future, artworks created after 1946 can be exported without separate permission. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official stated, "Artworks created before 1945 will also be allowed to be exported without review if they are below a certain price."

Furthermore, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will improve tax and financing systems related to the K-content industry to activate investment. To support financing for small content companies, the system will be reformed to provide guarantees not only for production but also for planning, development, and distribution stages.

To alleviate difficulties for small business owners and companies, the Ministry will first establish legal grounds to exempt administrative sanctions. Amendments will be made to the 'Movie and Video Act,' 'Game Industry Act,' and 'Performance Act' to prevent innocent small business owners, such as PC room operators, from unfairly facing business suspension or registration cancellation due to youth being deceived by forged, altered, or stolen IDs. For laws like the 'Music Industry Act' that already have exemption provisions, exemption conditions will be expanded. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official explained, "If circumstances show that the youth status was unknown due to forgery, alteration, or theft, or if the ID could not be checked due to assault or threats, administrative sanctions can be exempted."

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will also change the non-member golf course usage method, which was previously on a first-come, first-served basis only. It will open the way for various product developments linking golf courses and accommodations and abolish the obligation to assign sports instructors at golf courses. Additionally, the obligation to report minor content modifications that do not affect rating classification will be relaxed by amending laws.

The regional culture and tourism revitalization plan focuses on strengthening local government capabilities. The procedure requiring prior feasibility evaluation by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism before establishing public museums and art galleries will be abolished. The system will be improved to allow local governments to evaluate themselves. To help each region make the most of its unique characteristics, the requirements for 'tourism complexes' will also be relaxed. Currently, tourism complexes can only be designated by provincial governors with prior consultation with the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism if the total area is over 500,000㎡. In the future, a 'small-scale tourism complex' system will be introduced, allowing regions with smaller total areas (50,000㎡ to 300,000㎡) to establish frameworks for regional tourism development.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will also lead life-oriented regulatory innovation. The maximum period required to verify the copyright owner or residence of rights holders for using orphan works will be shortened from one month to 20 days. The speed and convenience of the statutory license system for using works will be enhanced. A plan to reduce the additional registration fee for works published sequentially in parts, such as webtoons and web novels (from 20,000?30,000 KRW to 10,000 KRW), will also be specified. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official explained, "Currently, registering the copyright online for a webtoon 'A' with 50 episodes costs 1.18 million KRW, but in the future, it will be reduced by 41.5% to only 690,000 KRW."