The Intellectual Property Office said on the 25th that it created the Intellectual Property Dispute Response Bureau to bolster the prevention and response to intellectual property disputes, and set the 2026 budget at 46.8 billion won, up 14.5 billion won from a year earlier. That is a 45.1% increase from last year.
The Intellectual Property Dispute Response Bureau will serve as the control tower overseeing everything from preemptively blocking intellectual property disputes to swift, nationwide responses when disputes arise. To oversee and coordinate intellectual property protection functions dispersed across ministries, it was organized at the launch of the Intellectual Property Office with one bureau, five divisions, and 42 staff.
Going forward, it plans to focus on projects to eradicate acts of riding the Korean Wave, block the manufacture of counterfeit goods using advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and support remedies for buyers of counterfeit goods, provide effective support in lawsuits with overseas non-practicing entities (NPEs) and protect technology, and build and disseminate an AI-based trade secret management system.
In particular, 9.4 billion won was allocated to prepare tailored response strategies, including stronger on-site investigations and crackdowns, establishing cooperation systems with overseas missions, sending warning letters, and supporting civil litigation.
The plan also includes 1.6 billion won to introduce anti-counterfeiting technologies that make it easier to verify genuine products and harder to produce counterfeits, and 2.9 billion won to build a system that uses AI to support authentication of counterfeit goods.
Measures will also be strengthened to reduce technology theft damages suffered by small and midsize enterprises. To minimize damages estimated at about 540 billion won annually, 1.2 billion won will be invested in expanding consulting on trade secret and technology protection and building AI-based systems for classifying trade secrets and preventing leaks.
In addition, to respond to NPE lawsuits that our corporations face overseas, a separate budget of 1 billion won was set aside for trend analysis in industries where disputes are frequent, development of preemptive response strategies, and operation of an early warning system.
The Intellectual Property Office will also work to strengthen the dispute response infrastructure. It will establish an Integrated Intellectual Property Legal Aid Center by consolidating the Public Patent Attorney Center, the Industrial Property Dispute Mediation Committee, and the Trade Secret Protection Center; open additional Overseas Intellectual Property Centers to respond to overseas disputes; and expand a comprehensive support system by strengthening education for local corporations and institutions.
Intellectual Property Office Commissioner Kim Yong-seon said, "Protecting intellectual property, which makes continuous technological innovation possible, is very important to securing the nation's growth engine," adding, "The Intellectual Property Office will actively work to build an environment where the people of our country and corporations can engage freely without worrying about intellectual property disputes so that everyone can grow together."