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Trademark police seize 20,000 pieces of counterfeit K-pop merch
Korea’s Trademark Police Division, in cooperation with K-pop powerhouse HYBE, have seized nearly 20,000 pieces of counterfeit K-pop merchandise of nine popular idol groups, including BTS, Seventeen and Tomorrow X Together (TXT).
The trademark police referred the head of the counterfeit operation to the prosecution without detention on charges of violating the Trademark Act, according to the music industry on Wednesday.
In April, the trademark police raided a counterfeiting operation in the Namdaemun area of central Seoul and confiscated 19,356 items. The haul included more than 30 different types of merchandise, such as photocards, socks, pens, clothing, mirrors, keychains, hats, mobile phone accessories and tumblers.
The trademark police previously seized about 1,300 counterfeit goods from a store in Myeongdong in May 2024, during a joint crackdown with HYBE. That investigation led to the discovery of the supplier.
The counterfeiting operation and the stores selling the fake merchandise reportedly targeted foreign tourists and K-pop fans, capitalizing on Myeongdong’s status as a popular shopping and cultural hub to reap illicit profits.
HYBE has been actively monitoring and cracking down on both online and offline counterfeit activities to protect the IP of its artists, including trademark rights, design rights and patents.
In 2024, the agency removed 13,691 listings for counterfeit goods on domestic e-commerce platforms and 278,568 listings on overseas platforms. It also took down 10,770 social media posts that illegally distributed paid video content featuring its artists and sanctioned 94 mobile apps for trademark or copyright infringement.
Offline, HYBE became the first Korean entertainment company to provide training for customs officials, offering five sessions on how to distinguish genuine from counterfeit products related to its artists. These efforts led to the seizure of 3,462 counterfeit items in 2024 — a 595 percent increase from the 498 items seized in 2023.
Industry insiders say stronger enforcement and penalties are needed to curb the circulation of counterfeit K-pop merchandise.
“We will continue to work closely with investigative agencies, including the trademark police at the Korean Intellectual Property Office, to protect the IP rights of our artists and combat the distribution of counterfeit goods while raising awareness of the issue,” HYBE said in a statement.
The trademark police referred the head of the counterfeit operation to the prosecution without detention on charges of violating the Trademark Act, according to the music industry on Wednesday.
The suspect is accused of supplying fake merchandise infringing on the intellectual property (IP) of K-pop artists to stores in Myeongdong, central Seoul, a popular destination for foreign tourists.
In April, the trademark police raided a counterfeiting operation in the Namdaemun area of central Seoul and confiscated 19,356 items. The haul included more than 30 different types of merchandise, such as photocards, socks, pens, clothing, mirrors, keychains, hats, mobile phone accessories and tumblers.
The trademark police previously seized about 1,300 counterfeit goods from a store in Myeongdong in May 2024, during a joint crackdown with HYBE. That investigation led to the discovery of the supplier.
The counterfeiting operation and the stores selling the fake merchandise reportedly targeted foreign tourists and K-pop fans, capitalizing on Myeongdong’s status as a popular shopping and cultural hub to reap illicit profits.
HYBE has been actively monitoring and cracking down on both online and offline counterfeit activities to protect the IP of its artists, including trademark rights, design rights and patents.
In 2024, the agency removed 13,691 listings for counterfeit goods on domestic e-commerce platforms and 278,568 listings on overseas platforms. It also took down 10,770 social media posts that illegally distributed paid video content featuring its artists and sanctioned 94 mobile apps for trademark or copyright infringement.
Offline, HYBE became the first Korean entertainment company to provide training for customs officials, offering five sessions on how to distinguish genuine from counterfeit products related to its artists. These efforts led to the seizure of 3,462 counterfeit items in 2024 — a 595 percent increase from the 498 items seized in 2023.
Industry insiders say stronger enforcement and penalties are needed to curb the circulation of counterfeit K-pop merchandise.
“We will continue to work closely with investigative agencies, including the trademark police at the Korean Intellectual Property Office, to protect the IP rights of our artists and combat the distribution of counterfeit goods while raising awareness of the issue,” HYBE said in a statement.
