Two Masterminds Behind 'PickleTV' and Other Sites Arrested and Detained
Operators of illegal streaming sites that unlawfully broadcast Korean content in Vietnam were caught through international cooperative investigations. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Police Agency announced on the 10th that they had arrested and sent two masterminds who operated 'PickleTV' and 'TVChamp' to prosecution last month, in collaboration with the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol).
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Police Agency apprehended the mastermind of an illegal streaming site, who was denied entry as a criminal in Thailand last December, at the Incheon Airport arrival hall. [Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism]
They are accused of distributing 32,124 video works, including not only Korean content but also content from Netflix, Disney+, and Apple TV, through illegal sites, and earning approximately 400 million KRW in illegal profits by attracting Google AdSense advertisements. During the investigation, it was revealed that they established a corporation called 'Lucius House' in Vietnam, hired locals, and conducted overseas server construction and real-time monitoring of data transmission volume. It was also uncovered that they stabilized real-time streaming services by applying the CDN of the American company Cloudflare. CDN is a service that quickly delivers large-scale content to many users through distributed servers.
They also changed the name of the initially operated PickleTV to 'CocoaTV' in February 2023. This domain imitated 'Cocoa,' operated by the domestic company Wavve Americas in the United States. A court ruling in the U.S. prohibited the use of the domain and unauthorized use of content due to copyright and trademark infringement, leading to its closure in February last year.
This arrest is a result of the 'Online Illegal Reproduction Response (I-SOP·Interpol-Stop Online Piracy)' agreement between the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Police Agency with Interpol. The Ministry’s Copyright Crime Forensic Investigation Unit confirmed the copyright infringement and, in September last year, cooperated with the National Police Agency and the Korea Copyright Protection Agency’s Vietnam office to issue red notices for the two suspects through Interpol. In December last year, one suspect was arrested at Incheon Airport after being denied entry as a criminal in Thailand, and both suspects were detained together after voluntary appearance.
Jung Hyang-mi, Director of the Copyright Bureau at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, "This case shows that even as illegal distribution methods of K-content become increasingly sophisticated and intelligent, arrests can be made through international cooperation and persistent tracking." She added, "This year as well, we will continue international cooperative efforts with the National Police Agency and Interpol to protect K-content."
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