The Fair Trade Commission is activating a public-private cooperative monitoring network to root out large corporations' technology theft. The core is to appoint 12 on-site experts by industry as "small and medium-sized enterprise technology protection monitors" to keep constant watch for technology theft and ensure swift investigations through tips.
On the 4th, the Fair Trade Commission held an "appointment ceremony for small and medium-sized enterprise technology protection monitors" at the Korea Fair Trade Mediation Agency in Jung-gu, Seoul, and announced a comprehensive plan to eradicate technology theft. The monitor system is a public-private cooperation mechanism designed to detect at an early stage unfair practices such as technology misuse or data demands arising in the course of transaction relationships with large corporations.
The monitors appointed this time are composed of experts in industries where technology theft is frequent, such as machinery, electrical and electronics, automobiles, and software. In subcontracting transaction settings, they will detect suspected violations such as unfair demands for technical data, nonpayment, and price cuts, and report them to the Fair Trade Commission. Based on information from the monitors, the Fair Trade Commission plans to initiate ex officio investigations and swiftly enforce the law.
An official at the Fair Trade Commission said, "There are still many small and medium-sized enterprises that cannot even file reports due to fear of retaliation by large corporations," and noted, "We will move away from a report-dependent system and build an information collection structure through various channels." To that end, the commission will establish an "anonymous reporting center for technology theft" within the Korea Venture Business Association and plans to add an anonymous tip hotline in the future.
Interagency cooperation will also be strengthened. The Fair Trade Commission will regularize a working council with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Korean Intellectual Property Office, and the Korean National Police Agency to share information on technology theft and improve the efficiency of case response.
Measures to strengthen law enforcement will proceed in parallel. Starting next year, the Fair Trade Commission will significantly increase its specialized investigative personnel for technology theft and expand the number of ad hoc ex officio investigations to three times a year. It will also reorganize the Technology Review Advisory Committee to conduct case reviews that reflect the latest technology trends.
Legislative tasks will also be pursued. Through revisions to the Fair Transactions in Subcontracting Act, the Fair Trade Commission will shift the burden of proof for technology theft damage from victim corporations to perpetrator corporations, and will introduce a "Korean-style discovery system (discovery)" and an obligation for the Fair Trade Commission to submit materials to the court to ease the litigation burden on victim corporations.
At the same time, using penalty surcharges imposed and collected by the Fair Trade Commission as a financial source, a "victim relief fund" will be created to expand loans, litigation cost support, and restart programs for corporations harmed by technology theft.
A monitor who attended the appointment ceremony that day said, "We will uncover even hard-to-spot technology theft so that small and medium-sized enterprises can innovate with peace of mind."
Vice Chair Nam Dong-il of the Fair Trade Commission said, "Monitors will play the role of 'secret royal inspectors,' listening most closely to voices on the ground and detecting technology theft at an early stage," adding, "We will build an integrated system that connects not only tight monitoring and strict sanctions but also the entire process of prevention, protection, and restart."