The Korean Intellectual Property Office has allocated a budget of 7.248 billion won for 2026, an increase of 2.7% (190 million won) compared to this year. The key focus is to enhance the competitiveness of K-brands by responding to foreign entities using domestic trademarks without permission or creating confusion with our products through counterfeit goods, and by supporting innovative technology corporations.
According to the Korean Intellectual Property Office on the 1st, this budget plan will focus on investments in areas such as the creation, protection, and utilization of intellectual property, providing high-quality examination and trial services, and enhancing efficiency in research and development based on patent big data. The major project cost is 4.189 billion won, an increase of 536 million won compared to this year.
The examination and trial services will incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance efficiency, and a new project titled 'Analysis of Overseas Patent Examination Systems' will be established to provide practical information to export corporations for easily securing intellectual property rights (IP) overseas.
To ensure that innovative technology corporations can secure stable operating funds by using intellectual property as collateral, the intellectual property valuation and collateral industrial property rights acquisition projects will also be expanded.
In particular, the Korean Intellectual Property Office plans to strengthen surveys and crackdowns to prevent damage to the image of domestic brands. Recently, there has been a surge in foreign entities preemptively using domestic companies' trademarks or creating confusion with our products such as 'Hangang Noodles' and 'Kim Kim Soju'. The Korean Intellectual Property Office plans to respond through warning letters, civil lawsuits, and joint applications.
Additionally, support for introducing anti-counterfeiting technology for export goods, as well as a new project to assist with AI evaluations of counterfeit health-related products such as cosmetics, will be promoted.
In the fields of research and development and economic security, an automatic analysis platform for industrial property information will be established to easily utilize vast patent data. Through this platform, corporations and research institutions will quickly derive technology trends and key patent information that can be utilized in their research and development strategies.
A new project titled 'IP-based Technology Commercialization Strategy Support Project' will also be introduced to help solve technical issues and assist in product development, ensuring that excellent patents in high-tech industries do not go unused.
The budget proposal and fund management plan for the Korean Intellectual Property Office for next year are expected to be finalized in December after going through committee reviews and resolutions in the National Assembly.