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Yonhap News Agency pursues rival for unauthorized distribution of Rodong Sinmun
The state-funded South Korean state-run Yonhap News Agency on Monday lodged a lawsuit against rival News 1 for distributing documents from the North Korean daily. Rodong Sinmun without government authorization.
Yonhap said on Tuesday that it officially accused News 1, a subsidiary of the MoneyToday Media group, of violating the law on inter-Korean cooperation and exchange, demanding that any business between the two Koreas be given the right to be paid. Seoul approval.
Since the surprise decision by the North Korean newspaper to stop online distribution of free PDF files last December, the two outlets have been arguing over the exclusive rights to distribute its production in South Korea.
Initially, we did not know why the RodongNorth Korea's largest print newspaper removed the PDF option. It was later revealed that the service was interrupted while News 1 continued negotiations on exclusive rights of publication.
Yonhap, which is funded by South Korean taxpayers, held the exclusive right to distribute material from Rodong to customers based in South Korea until the end of 2018.
The organization had previously signed a contract with the Japanese company Korea Media, which was then cleared by the Ministry of South Korean Unification in March 2017.
Korea Media, which would be linked to the pro-Pyongyang group based in Japan Chongryon organization, works with foreign outlets to negotiate the rights to republish North Korean documents.
The organization, however, terminated its contract with Yonhap late last year, while continuing with a new rights agreement with News 1.
Yonhap this week accused the MoneyToday Media group of agreeing to pay several taxes to Korea Media without first obtaining permission from the South Korean government.
In a statement, Yonhap said Tuesday that News 1 had distributed and released documents from Rodong obtained via an "unidentified channel" between March 2017 and December 2018.
Yonhap said, between January and March of this year, News 1 also distributed documents from Rodong to local customers, including newspaper companies, without the approval of the South Korean government.
The official news agency insisted that News 1 had violated article 13 of the law on cooperation and inter-Korean trade, according to which "anyone who intends to take or d & rsquo; import goods, etc., must obtain the approval of the Minister of Unification ".
"The government has sanctioned the act of importing content without the approval of the government, considering that … the exchanges between the two Koreas may affect national security or disrupt the market order" Yonhap said in a statement.
"If local businesses move projects forward competitively, this can distort solid inter-Korean cooperation."
South Korean law requires the Ministry of Unification to approve all inter-Korean trade | Photo: Ministry of Unification
News 1 was not able to comment on the lawsuit when he was contacted by NK News Tuesday morning.
But the president of the agency, Lee Baek-gyu, last week issued a statement to employees via the company's private intranet, with the aim of "dispelling the current misunderstandings "surrounding the contract.
In the declaration, obtained by NK NewsLee said News 1 and its parent company, MoneyToday Media, were in the final stages of negotiations with the South Korean government.
The company plans to sign a formal contract with Korea Media after a consultation on "government requirements" and complies with "normal business procedures," the statement added.
"The concern that excessive competition may disrupt intercorean exchanges and cooperation is at odds with the truth," Lee said. "I can say with confidence that we are pursuing the contractual process based on common sense."
"Yes [some] denouncing us for having concluded the contract with excessive conditions for our profit, it would be … tactless behavior and black propaganda to delay the approval of the Ministry of Unification ".
News 1 also pledged to "get a wider publicity compared to the previous contractor", promising to provide content from the Rodong Yonhap and other non-customer outlets.
The statement also stresses that the North Korean media distribution market structure in the south needs to be reformed in light of the "new phase of inter-Korean trade".
Published by Oliver Hotham
The South Korean state-run South Korean news agency Yonhap on Monday lodged a lawsuit against rival News 1 for distributing documents from the North Korean daily Rodong Sinmun without government permission. Yonhap said on Tuesday that it officially accused News 1, a subsidiary of MoneyToday Media Group, of violating the law on exchange and cooperation between Korean countries –
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