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New Technologies & The Law

Each year, our lives are changed by new devices and inventions. But how do laws keep up with technological disruptions? How does new technology intersect and interact with laws and regulations?

New Technologies & The Law

Is it copyright Infringement if you introduce a movie on YouTube?

By Yang Sung-ho'Boramtube', which has 17 million subscribers on YouTube, is a hot topic these days. The six-year-old creator's advertising revenue is comparable to MBC, one of the top three Korean broadcast networks. The development of broadband internet and cheap video camera enabled anyone to produce their own show for broadcast, and the emergence of customized and interactive personal media channels on sites such as YouTube provided the conditions for equal competition as long as the contents were good.As news has spread that making YouTube videos can reap a lot of profits, many people become content creators as full- or part-time jobs. Some creators explore new fields with their unique material, but just as with the phrase "There is nothing new under the sun," showing clips of, reacting to or criticizing another's content, such as movies and books, is more often the case.However, if your video contains content originally produced by someone else, a charge of copyright infringement can arise. In the past, there was a time when copying another's contents was not a serious problem.

Aug 11, 2019By Yang Sung-ho
Is it copyright Infringement if you introduce a movie on YouTube?
New Technologies & The Law

'Crunch mode' for overtime in games industry

The work environment in the games industry is changing rapidly. GettyimagesbankBy Lee Dong-jinSince Moon Jae-in was elected President in 2017, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and the Ministry of Employment and Labor have enacted and amended many labor laws. Accordingly, a lot of labor issues have arisen in various industries, and their biggest impact was felt by the computer game industry.“Crunch mode” has recently become a popular word in Korea. It refers to long periods of overtime, which forces employees to sacrifice sleep, nutrition and hygiene to develop a game product quickly. At first it was an informal term used between people who work in the game industry. However, it gained broader currency through some incidents like the suicide of a young employee who worked for a well-known Korean game development company due to too much work and stress during such a “crunch mode” period.Even though Korea is known as a country where employees' actual working hours are excessively high, the game industry is much more severe on that point because companies are

Jul 6, 2019By Lee Dong-jin
'Crunch mode' for overtime in games industry
New Technologies & The Law

There is such a thing as Bitcoin

Bitcoin image / AFPBy Choi Sun-minOnce there was a boy who learned that there was a dragon living in his house. He told his mother, “Mom, there's a dragon in the house!” But his mother told him “Son, there's no such thing as dragons.” Little by little the dragon got bigger and bigger until it took up half of the house. But still the boy's mother told him again and again, “There's no such thing as dragons.” Eventually, when the dragon took up the whole house, and the family couldn't live there anymore, his mother said, “Yes, son, there is such a thing as dragons.” At that moment, the dragon went back to its original size.When I think about this story, I am always reminded of cryptocurrencies. These have severely disrupted the world's financial market for more than two years now. Although some bills have been introduced in the National Assembly, there still isn't a single law regarding cryptocurrencies in Korea. According to current laws, like the dragons in the story, “there's no such thing as Bitcoin.” The judiciary's attitu

Jun 29, 2019By Choi Sun-min
There is such a thing as Bitcoin
New Technologies & The Law

Before you install and use a fancy font

By Park Eun-jiIt is commonly thought that using proprietary fonts for non-profit, personal purposes does not constitute copyright infringement. However, the scope of such non-commercial use of fonts is much more limited than the public may think. Special caution must be particularly exercised when using downloadable free font files from the internet to decorate social network accounts, blogs, or websites.This is because, unlike ordinary property, “computer program property” such as fonts may be protected by copyright even when used for non-profit or personal purposes. In other words, the Copyright Act stipulates that for “computer program property” such as fonts, even usage for personal and non-commercial purposes may be prohibited if it “unreasonably prejudices the interest of the holder of author's economic rights,” unless permission has been received from the rights holder. Therefore, if you download and install font files from the internet to use on your social network account or personal website, there is a possibility it may be in violation o

Apr 1, 2019By Park Eun-ji
Before you install and use a fancy font
New Technologies & The Law

Steps for better bicycle-sharing services

There are things to be done for better bicycle-sharing services for all. Korea Times fileBy Lee Dong-jinAs in other countries, bicycle-sharing services in Korea have also become big business. Seoul Metropolitan Government officially began its own service named “Ddareungi (따릉이)” or “Seoul's bike” in 2015, and several companies now also provide similar services.Because bicycle-sharing is a desirable solution for air pollution, traffic jams, and lack of exercise, people are highly encouraged to use such a service. But to secure a safe environment for users and to promote bicycle-sharing services, the government still needs to take several steps.First, certain obligations should be imposed on all service providers. Most restrictions in Korean traffic laws focus just on the controller of a vehicle. For example, bicycle riders must have lights on their bicycle for night riding. However, in the case of bicycle-sharing services, users who actually ride the bicycles cannot install lights do so because they are not owners and are only riding for a very short time. It is

Mar 2, 2019By Lee Dong-jin
Steps for better bicycle-sharing services
New Technologies & The Law

Flexible devices and the problem of battery safety

LG's rollable OLED TV. / Courtesy of LG ElectronicsBy Choi Sun-minThe CES (International Consumer Electronics Show) is an annual technology gift for tech lovers all around the world. One of the most notable devices at the 2019 CES was LG's rollable OLED TV.Literally, the OLED TV was rolled up in a white box, and it was a breathtaking moment when the display was unrolled. It was graceful. Samsung announced its plan to release its foldable Galaxy phone series in 2019 as well. I dare say 2019 will be the year of the war of flexible displays made by high-tech companies.However, a foldable phone is different from a rollable TV. Why can't mobile phones be rolled, unlike a TV?The problem is batteries. A TV can be supplied with electricity from a wall outlet, but a cell phone can only be powered by its internal battery. Lithium-Ion (Li-Ion) is a type of rechargeable battery widely used in portable electronics, especially mobile phones. Li-Ion batteries are efficient and have high energy density. However, they are also notorious for occasional battery explosions. Readers will remember the Sam

Feb 16, 2019By Choi Sun-min
Flexible devices and the problem of battery safety
New Technologies & The Law

Recent trends in gaming industry regulations

By Park Eun-jiA few years ago, a panel of celebrities on a TV show was asked to rank Korea's cultural contents industry exports in terms of sales volume. The categories were movies, music, and electronic games, the last of which turned out to be the clear winner. Panel members expressed great surprise, as they seemed not to believe that video game industry sales could outrank movies and K-pop. This might be indicative of the general population's perception of the game industry at the time.However, now in the new era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, awareness of the size and importance of competitive gaming, including esports, has grown. The Moon Jae-in administration is easing excessive regulations on the game industry as it drives regulatory reforms to spur innovation growth. Since January 2017, the self-rating system, which was at first applied only to mobile games, has been extended to all platforms, except for adult-oriented or arcade games. Beginning with the appointment of Sony Interactive Entertainment Korea (SIEK) as the first self-rating company in July 2018, some of the

Jan 13, 2019By Park Eun-ji
Recent trends in gaming industry regulations
New Technologies & The Law

Handy tips for using ride-sharing services

If a car accident occurs while using the service, the legal issues will be much more complicated. Korea Times fileBy Lee Dong-jinThe business-to-consumer ride-sharing market in Korea has rapidly increased and 5 million people here have used such a service. The whole process can be controlled by a smartphone application and you do not need to see or speak to anyone from the rental company. The car garage will be close to you, open 24 hours a day, and you can freely decide how many hours you will need the car (with older, traditional car rental services, you can only rent by the day). Moreover, because you are renting a car for only a few hours, rather than buying your own vehicle, you don't need to worry about registration or other administrative hassles.However, according to a survey, 26 percent of ride-sharing consumers have had a car accident while renting and only 25.9 percent of them were able to contact the company's service center on their first attempt. In addition, if a car accident happens, the resulting legal relationship will be much more complicated because you have to ta

Dec 29, 2018By Lee Dong-jin
Handy tips for using ride-sharing services
New Technologies & The Law

Smart factories and pending Personal Video Information Protection Act

By Lim Ho-sanOne of my clients is a software development start-up that is jumping on the bandwagon of the deep learning Smart Factory system. In the course of developing an automatic system to analyze the progress of shipbuilding for a leading Korean shipbuilder, a system that applies deep-learning mechanisms, the company designed an analysis methodology where the on-site shipbuilding processes are recorded to ensure the system “learns” the steps of each block positioning itself at the desired spot. An unexpected consequence of this for the company was a labor backlash sparked by the video recording of the premises. The labor union was seriously concerned about surveillance of employees. The analysis methodology ended up being scrapped. The right to use and protect such “personal video information” matters not only in the case of unmanned aerial vehicles (also known as drones) and autonomous vehicles, but also in collection of visual data to enable deep learning for a smart factory system.With a bill for the proposed Personal Video Information Protection Act s

Dec 15, 2018By Lim Ho-san
Smart factories and pending Personal Video Information Protection Act
New Technologies & The Law

The relationship between 'smart contracts' and vending machines

By Shin Chae-eunOur lives are closely related to contracts. Let's take my way to work today as an example. I turned on a music streaming app and left home listening to music. I entered the subway station by checking in with my transport card. I was thirsty, so I bought some water from the vending machine on the subway platform. I bought a sandwich from the store in front of my office. All these things include the process of entering into a contract and implementing it. Simply put, a contract is a promise between two parties. A traditional contract is a legal act made by a multi-party agreement. In the example, “A gives B 4,000 won, B gives A a sandwich,” when does “the formation of the contract” happen? Under the traditional model of contract formation, a contract is made by mutual assent or agreement. In simple terms, the formation of the contract happens when A and B agree to hand over the sandwich in exchange for 4,000 won. Contracts are the product of the will of both parties. Even before exchanging a sandwich for 4,000 won, the formation of contract has h

Nov 18, 2018By Shin Chae-eun
The relationship between 'smart contracts' and vending machines
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