Beware of Purchasing 'K-pop Planned Products' on Overseas Sites... Increasing Consumer Damage

Korea Consumer Agency, Analysis Results of International Transaction Consumer Consultations

Status of Consumer Inquiries on International Transactions Related to K-pop Promotional Products.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Recently, cases of domestic consumers suffering damages after purchasing K-pop special edition products from overseas sites to receive freebies have been on the rise.

On the 10th, the Korea Consumer Agency, which operates the 'International Transaction Consumer Portal,' reported that among 390 international transaction consumer consultations related to K-pop special edition products received from January last year to October this year, 21.5% were from domestic consumers and 78.5% from overseas consumers. Of these, 366 cases, accounting for 93.8%, were received in the second half of this year (July to October), with all domestic consumer consultations occurring during this period.

Among the 390 consultations, the types of complaints were 85.9% 'breach of contract (incomplete performance),' 8.0% 'cancellation, refund, or exchange delays and refusals,' and 2.5% 'delivery-related complaints.' Due to the high loyalty of consumers toward idols, many preferred contract fulfillment over cancellation or refunds even when delivery was significantly delayed.

K-pop special edition products are often sold under conditions where freebies such as photo cards or book lamps for each idol group member are provided in limited quantities or randomly, or where purchasing the main product multiple times grants chances to apply for services like video calls with idols or concert participation. Because of this, consumers tend to purchase the same product in large quantities or repeatedly, but disputes have arisen related to missing freebies, cancellation and refund requests after confirming non-winning in events, and additional shipping costs incurred from using forwarding services.

The Consumer Agency advised that since freebies like photo cards given with product purchases are not the contractual object, while consumers can request reshipment from businesses in cases of missing or damaged freebies, such demands are not legally enforceable. They also recommended that for custom-made or limited production products, if contract fulfillment is significantly delayed, consumers should promptly apply for cancellation and refunds.

The Consumer Agency has compiled frequently asked complaints related to K-pop international transactions in a Q&A format and introduced them on the International Transaction Consumer Portal. This information can be found under the 'Damage Prevention Information' menu on the portal's main page.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.