Lotteria's online server shuts down due to heavy internet traffic

A passenger walks by Lotteria restaurant in Seoul in this 2018 file photo. Yonhap

By Kim Jae-heun

Lotte Group's fast food restaurant chain Lotteria suffered an internet server shutdown from 7 p.m. to midnight, April 19, preventing customers nationwide from ordering food online.

Customers couldn't place orders through food delivery services Baedal Minjok, Yogiyo or Coupang Eats for five hours during the shutdown.

Lotte GRS, the network operator of Lotteria, said it would provide compensation but that this would take some time.

“We are currently seeking to arrange compensation according to damages suffered by different parties. This may differ between individuals according to which food delivery service they used,” a Lotte GRS official said.

The company said that a sudden rise in online orders caused heavy traffic that overloaded the internet server.

Other fast food franchisers are also struggling to cope with the increasing number of online orders.

Lotte recently invested 10 billion in strengthening its computer network after food delivery services begin to thrive due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it could not handle the skyrocketing amount of orders being placed, especially during the early evening when most people eat dinner.

“This is first that that we have been confronted with a problem with our computer network. We are looking into what cause the incident but for now, everything has returned to normal,” the official said.

Meanwhile, a restaurant supervisor posted an allegation on Blind, an online community for office workers, Thursday, alleging that Lotteria was avoiding to take responsibility for the shutdown.

The person, who identified himself as one of the supervisors at a Lotteria restaurant, said Lotteria blamed the incident on its IT firm to avoid paying compensation.

Lotte GRS denied the allegation and said it was reviewing how to pay compensation to those who suffered damage.