▲ Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that it has requested police investigations into 16 agencies on charges of operating popular culture and arts entertainment businesses without proper registration, following a two-day inspection on November 9 and 10.
Having operated a guidance period for the registration of popular culture and arts entertainment businesses since last year, the ministry conducted on-site inspections of 50 suspected unregistered or poorly managed agencies following joint fact-finding surveys with local governments.
As a result of these inspections, 16 agencies whose registrations have not been confirmed to date were selected for investigation referrals, and their information was forwarded to the respective local governments with jurisdiction.
Under the Act on the Development of the Popular Culture and Arts Industry, individuals who engage in the popular culture and arts entertainment business without registering with the competent local government are subject to up to two years in prison or a fine of up to 20 million won.
The ministry plans to respond to unregistered operations in cooperation with local governments while regularly checking whether registered agencies comply with the registration requirements.
An official from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism stated, “We will continue to provide guidance and promotion regarding the system throughout the year to encourage businesses to fulfill their registration obligations,” adding, “We plan to conduct regular inspections so that agency registration is not just a one-time procedure, but ensures that registered companies continuously comply with legal requirements.”
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.