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January 16, 2009
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| In an effort to save youngsters from indiscriminate litigation for copyright infringement, the Daejeon Jungbu Police took an unprecedented step yesterday by referring young offenders to summary trials. The first such case involved an 18-year-old high school student who was accused of a copyright violation last October after she posted music files in her blog without obtaining permission from the song’s owner. A law firm representing the accuser told her the suit could be settled if she forked over 1 million won ($725). The teenager’s family was reluctant to pay, citing financial hardship. In negotiations, the law firm cut the amount to settle for 800,000 won. Police, however, decided to recommend a summary trial. In Korea, a summary trial normally handles misdemeanors subject to fines of less than 200,000 won. The court slapped the teenager with a 50,000 won. A copyright violation can be punished up to five year imprisonment or up to 50 million won in fines, but the police and the court treated the case as a misdemeanor because she was a minor and it was her first time offence. Police argue that summary trials are important to keep lawyers off the backs of minors and their families. Lawyers and copyright holders, however, see things differently. They fear police are taking a serious matter too lightly. According to police, lawyers have found a lucrative new market in suing teens for illegally sharing digital files. There were 13,114 such petitions in 2006. The number leapt to 78,538 in 2008. Police said the petitions were filed indiscriminately and youngsters, not those who violate copyright with malicious intent or for profit-making, have become victims. “Law firms even hired part-time staffers to track down copyright violators on the Internet,” said an official of the Daejeon police. “And then, they contacted the copyright holders to notify them about the cases and volunteered to represent them.” Though many youngsters are unaware of their offense while maintaining their blogs or homepages, parents are often left to foot the bill. They want to prevent their children from becoming convicts, the police official said. “About 10 such complaints are filed every day,” a police officer of the Dongdaemun Police in Seoul said. “We have no time to do other tasks. And it becomes even more serious because the youngsters commit crimes to come up with settlement money.” “We have struggled to find a way to stop the abuse of the justice system,” said Hwang Un-ha, Daejeon Jungbu Police chief. “So we decided to exercise the right of police to refer cases for summary trial. It was a solution to save kids.” The Supreme Public Prosecutors’ Office, the National Police Agency and the Culture Ministry are currently discussing other measures to protect both copyright holders and youngsters. Copyright holders, however, are upset, claiming that the matter must not be treated lightly. “We agree that the law firms’ abuse of litigation is inappropriate,” said Yu Hyeong-seok, legal affairs team head of the Korea Music Copyright Association. “But the fundamental problem is the portal sites, which turn a blind eye to the kids’ copyright violations while raking in enormous profits. The companies that host blogs and other Internet communities must be held accountable.” By Kang In-sik JoongAng Ilbo/ Ser Myo-ja Staff Reporter [myoja@joongang.co.kr] |
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