[September 2026 Industry News] Abuse of Design Rights to Be Eliminated by Revised Law

We will elaborate a little more deeply on the news briefly covered in the newsletter.

NEWS #1Can you be attacked for something other than trademarks or copyrights?

For products with rapidly changing trends, such as fashion, miscellaneous goods, and stationery, it is necessary to quickly protect their designs. To this end, the Korean Intellectual Property Office has a separate‘Partial Design Review’ SystemI am running [it].

Design rights are intellectual property rights that protect the appearance of a product or goods, namely its form, shape, color, etc.This is especially true in the fashion and general merchandise sectors, where trends change rapidly; if it takes a long time to file and register a design, you may miss the crucial time when protection is actually needed.

To address these issues, we have implemented a partial design examination system that waives the examination for certain requirements, allowing for faster registration than a standard design examination. This system is characterized by its ability to quickly secure rights for designs of trend-sensitive products.

However, in recent years, cases of exploiting this loophole have increased.There have been repeated instances of copying famous characters or other companies' product designs exactly, registering them first, and then sending warning letters to the original creators or competitors to interfere with their business.So, why was this possible? And how is the recently enacted revised Design Protection Act changing this issue?

Partial Design Review Becomes a Channel for Imitation?

The partial design examination, introduced in 1998, applies to seven product categories including food, clothing and fashion accessories, bags and personal items, textiles and fabrics, packaging containers, jewelry and accessories, and stationery, and has the advantage of securing rights more quickly than the general examination. The problem is this'Early registration' does not undergo sufficient verification of noveltyThis was the case. Since existing characters or product designs can be copied exactly as they are without any paperwork issues and subsequently registered, there has been an increase in cases where this is abused to register first and then claim rights against the legitimate user.

What has the revised Design Protection Act changed?

The recently enacted revised Design Protection Act changed two things to fill this structural loophole. One isGrounds are established to allow examiners to immediately reject even design applications subject to partial examination if it is confirmed that there is a clear violation of novelty or prior application requirements.One is, and the other isExtending the period during which a third party can object to an unfair registrationno see.
As a result, blatant imitation and plagiarism applications are being rejected one after another during the actual examination stage, ensuring secure verification of rights.

Nevertheless, the most important thing is design right registration.

While it is clear that the revised law has made the regulations tighter to filter out imitation applications, the principle that the first party to file still has the advantage remains unchanged. This is because even if an examiner belatedly confirms the imitation and rejects the application, the confusion and response costs incurred by the original creator in the market during that time remain entirely with them.
Ultimately, the most certain defense is to proceed with copyright and design registration at the same time as your character is revealed.no see.

NEWS #2Baby Shark, Beloved for 11 Years: Why Is It Expanding Its Family?

Baby Shark, first unveiled in 2015, celebrates its 11th anniversary this year. The character, which is available in 25 languages ​​across 244 countries worldwide and has held the number one spot for YouTube views for several years, is said to be welcoming a new family member next year.
The Pinkfong Company CEO Kim Min-seokIn a recent interview, they announced plans to reveal Baby Shark's younger sibling and friend characters in the first half of next year and expand the worldview and story centering on them.Then, why does a character that has been loved for over 10 years continue to introduce new characters, and what strategy is hidden behind this?

Baby Shark is designed not as a single character, but as a 'family'.

For the past 10 years or so, Baby Shark has maintained the 'Baby Shark Family' consisting of a mom, dad, grandmother, and grandfather.It essentially sets up a structure that allows for the expansion of relationships from the very beginning, rather than stopping at just a single main character.It is.
The newly revealed younger sibling and friend characters also blend naturally into this family relationship network, allowing the worldview to be expanded without feeling unfamiliar to existing fans.

The introduction of a new character is actually a choice made to follow the 'target's growth'.

Kim Min-seok, CEO of The Pinkfong Company, stated that he would simultaneously focus on expanding content to match the growth of existing fans and ensuring a continuous influx of new child fans. The first generation of fans, who grew up watching Baby Shark, have now aged, and to retain them, the content must grow alongside them.

Until now, Baby Shark content has mainly consisted of short songs and repetitive stories. It had a simple structure suitable for toddlers.
However, the story changes a little when a new character, a younger sibling, is introduced. The protagonist finds themselves in a position where they have to take care of someone. This type of sibling relationship is a story structure that is better understood by children who are slightly older than babies. In other words,It may seem like adding just one character, but it is actually a method of gradually increasing the difficulty of the content and the story structure to suit grown-up fans.It is.

NEWS #3Brand mascots/local government characters can't make money? That's a thing of the past now.

Following 'Hodori,' the mascot of the 1988 Seoul Olympics, public characters embodying local history and specialties began to appear one after another starting in the mid-to-late 1990s, as the local autonomy system took root. Recently, there has been an increasing number of cases where the scope of activities is expanding beyond promotional images for government offices to include social media, merchandise, and collaborations with private companies. Let's examine how local government characters are establishing themselves as tangible business assets.Case of Gyeonggi-do character 'Bonggongi'Let's take a look through this.

Bonggong was created through internal collaboration.

As of 2023, Gyeonggi Province was the only one among the nation's 17 metropolitan and provincial governments that did not have a representative character. Instead of outsourcing, the province produced Bonggong-i through collaboration between internal design staff and the brand promotion team. This significantly reduced costs related to the development of the Bonggong-i character, unlike the previous slogan development project which cost 50 million won. Additionally, the name incorporates the provincial administration slogan 'excretaThe center of the fireenergyIt incorporates the consonants of 'Hoi-ui Gyeong-ui' and the meaning of 'Bong-gong,' which signifies working diligently for the country and society.

Bong-gong approached with a clear target in mind from the very beginning.

Instead of promoting Bonggong to all residents, Gyeonggi Province narrowed the scope of free usage rights for the character's intellectual property to self-sufficiency project organizations. As a result, the sales space at the provincial government building, operated by youths preparing for independence, generated 19 million won in sales within just 10 days of opening, and cumulative sales of Bonggong merchandise exceeded 260 million won.It amounts to the result of focusing on a single target instead of trying to promote the IP to a broad audience.no see.

I also chose a collaboration partner with the same target audience.

Last July, Gyeonggi Province held 'Bonggong Wiz Day' with KT Wiz, attracting 56,100 visitors over three days and selling collaborative uniforms and character merchandise. The key point here is that Bonggong did not choose just any company as a partner, but rather selected a sports club with a distinct local fandom.Since both Bonggong and KT Wiz had the same target, the 'Gyeonggi region,' it was able to lead to large-scale participation.
In addition, the entire proceeds from this collaboration were donated to foster local youth baseball. Bonggong-i is a character originally created to embody the meaning of "working hard for the country and society," and even after partnering with the brand, the structure was maintained so that the profits return to the local community.
Usually, the biggest concern when a local government character engages in commercial collaboration is that its original public service image becomes diluted, but Bonggong-i avoided this problem by designing the collaboration method itself so as not to conflict with the character's identity.

NEWS #4Strategy to turn a 7-year-old customer into a 30-year customer

The age limit for customers eligible to issue cards has been lowered by 5 years.

Last May, the age for issuing check cards was lowered from 12 to 7 following an amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Specialized Credit Finance Act. Previously, children in the lower grades of elementary school could not obtain a card in their own name. Now that this is possible starting at age 7, marketing methods in the financial industry are also changing.
In fact, products like cards and bank accounts are items that people rarely change once they are chosen. Even when applying for their first credit card as an adult, it is common to select one from the same company as the debit card they used as children.
so The financial industry believes that customers acquired at age 7 are highly likely to continue using the same brand even after becoming adults, so as soon as regulations were lifted, they set out to acquire customers in the younger age group.

Since I couldn't persuade the child directly, I used a character instead.

The problem is that it is difficult to directly explain the advantages of a card product to a 7-year-old child and persuade them. ThereforeInstead of explaining the benefits of the products, credit card companies put characters that children already like on the cards.The reason is that although the parent applies for the card, the purchase only occurs when the child says, "I want this card."
In fact, among collaboration card products, the Shinhan Card x Sanrio Card surpassed 50,000 applications within four days of its launch and issued over 120,000 cards in two months. KB Kookmin Card's Teenieping Card also broke the 100,000 mark within a month of its release.

If you are in a business selling long-lasting products, you can use the same method.

This strategy is not possible only because of the characteristics of the card product.If it is a product that customers use for a long time after becoming customers, you can approach it in a similar way.This applies to everything from bank deposits, insurance, and long-term rental products such as water purifiers and massage chairs, to subscription services that last for several years, such as study materials.

These products share a common characteristic: while the younger the potential customer, the longer the potential relationship will last, it is difficult to directly explain the product's value to young customers. Therefore, a strategy is needed to explain the product's advantages to parents while simultaneously creating points of contact that will pique the child's interest first.

Here, it is necessary to examine the case of credit card companies once again. This is because they did not choose characters simply based on "who likes this character right now." KB Kookmin Card targeted both family customers with young children and Generation Z through Teenieping, while Hyundai Card leveraged Dungeon & Fighter to target a game fandom that has lasted for over 20 years.

in other words, It considers not only the character's current recognition but also how the fandom will grow into customers in the future.It is. We selected the characters not just to secure young customers now, but with their future in mind, such as whether they will choose financial products or long-term services a few years from now.

NEWS #5Strategy to turn a 7-year-old customer into a 30-year customer

Character collaborations are usually used as a way to promote new products. However,Recently, major IPs are attaching characters to 'regions' rather than new products.Pokémon transformed the entire Busan Metro line into a stamp rally stage, and Miffy released editions featuring the Seokguram Grotto in Gyeongju and the Haenyeo of Jeju. Furthermore, Sanrio showcased K-local sensibilities by introducing region-specific characters developed based on 12 different regions.

As purpose-driven travel increases, characters are becoming a reason for visiting.

Tourist footsteps are spreading from the center of Seoul to Busan, Gyeongju, and Jeju. In the past, the typical approach was to visit famous spots in those cities—for instance, Haeundae or Gwangalli in Busan. However, nowadays, tourists move around seeking out places selling character merchandise or hosting events, such as pop-up stores or limited edition goods.Consumption that moves with the goal of 'things that can only be obtained in that place'It is getting bigger.

The form of regional collaborations varies depending on the characteristics of the IP.

BT21 is an IP where each character has their own original personality and narrative. That is why we were able to naturally incorporate a story about working at Jagalchi Market and going on vacation into the Busan Edition.
On the other hand, Miffy is a character whose original identity is drawn solely with simple lines, with no dialogue and almost no changes in facial expression. If a story were forced onto her, it would result in a collaboration that is uncharacteristic of Miffy. Therefore, instead of a story, Miffy chose to incorporate the shapes of Seokguram Cave and a female diver into the character's simple lines.

Regional collaborations can also be a strategy to increase sales.

Everland's Ruibao and Huibao are collaborating with six regions in sequence, starting with Gochang and continuing through Chungcheong-do, Jeju-do, Gyeongsang-do, Gangwon-do, and Seoul-Gyeonggi. The design ensures that a national map is completed once all the magnets from each region are collected. It is structured so that you do not stop after purchasing from one region, but are compelled to travel to the next to collect the magnets.A collaboration with a single region sells only to visitors of that region, but by combining multiple regions like this, you can make a single consumer open their wallet multiple times.

NEWS #6Local government characters, not major IPs, expanding overseas?

Brands aiming for overseas expansion typically seek to partner with established major IPs or global character companies. However, looking at K-characters that have recently been growing their presence in overseas markets, it is evident that major IPs are not the only answer to international expansion.

Local government characters with proven domestic popularity have expanded overseas.

'Joayong,' the official character of Yongin Special City in Gyeonggi Province, was originally created for city hall promotion. However, as its popularity grew domestically, it won the Grand Prize at the 2025 Korea Character Awards and was invited as the official character for Universal Korea's 'Jurassic World' visit in the same year. It appears that once its domestic recognition was proven, overseas events reached out to it first. Using this invitation as a stepping stone, the creation of a 'Joayong Street' in Vietnam has been confirmed, and copyright registration has even been completed in China.
It is rare for a local government character to lead to invitations to overseas events and the development of local commercial districts like this. NeverthelessJoa-yong's domestic popularity led to invitations to overseas events, which in turn led to the creation of a street in Vietnam and copyright registration in China.

Local government characters can also become partners for overseas expansion.

The reason brands seek out major global IPs first when planning overseas expansion is that their recognition in that country has already been proven. However, the case of Joayong demonstrates that local government characters can play the same role.
However, it must be clearly pointed out that Joayong does not yet have a history of collaborations with global brands. While it is not a proven, safe choice like a major IP, since no one has attempted it yet...Several benefits of collaborationYou can take it with you.
first, 'The title of ‘the first brand to collaborate with Joayong’You will have this. Later, whenever Joayong becomes a hot topic, the likelihood of the brand being mentioned along with it increases. Second,Brands that have collaborated once are likely to be selected as collaboration partners again.Since we already know the communication style and have produced results, this makes them a comfortable collaboration partner for Joayong as well. Third,Since it is not yet popular, you can set more favorable collaboration terms (royalties, scope of exclusivity, etc.).
If like Joa-yongIf you are considering collaborating with a character whose global popularity has not yet been proven, it is recommended to use the following methods to reduce risk.