Two Koreans who operated websites illegally streaming K-content, including Korean dramas, in Vietnam have been indicted.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 10th that it arrested two masterminds operating four illegal sites, including 'PickleTV' and 'TV Champ', through international cooperation with the Daejeon District Prosecutor's Office, the Korean National Police Agency, and Interpol. They were sent to custody last month.
They operated the illegal streaming sites from April 2022 to July of last year in Vietnam. In addition to domestic content, they also illegally provided overseas online video service (OTT) content such as Netflix, Disney+, and Apple TV to users. They distributed a total of 32,124 pieces of content and illegally obtained 400 million won in revenue through Google AdSense advertising.
The two masterminds behind PickleTV established a corporation in Vietnam and hired locals as developers and human resources personnel. To evade domestic investigators, they set up servers in a third country, used pseudonyms while registering domain names, frequently deleted personal information, and utilized virtual private networks (VPNs) and foreign credit cards.
Since February 2023, they changed the name and internet address of PickleTV to 'CocoaTV (kokoatv.net)'. This was a mimicry of 'Kokowa (kokowa.com)', operated by the domestic OTT Wave in the U.S. This site was shut down following a ruling last February, which found it infringed on copyrights and trademarks in a lawsuit filed by Wave's U.S. corporation. CocoaTV is estimated to have caused significant losses by illegally streaming programs from Korean broadcasters like KBS, MBC, and SBS, which Wave supplies exclusively overseas.
The copyright crime investigation unit of the ministry identified operators A and B last September and requested Interpol to issue a red notice. A was denied entry into Thailand in December of last year and was apprehended at Incheon Airport. Subsequently, B voluntarily presented himself in early last month. The ministry sent both individuals to the prosecution.
Jeong Hyang-mi, the head of the copyright division at the ministry, noted, "This is an important case showing that even as illegal distribution methods become increasingly sophisticated and intelligent, it is possible to apprehend them through international cooperation and persistent tracking." She added, "We will continue to strengthen international cooperation to protect K-content."