Minister Lee Young: "We Will Eradicate Unfair Trade Practices Such as Technology Theft from SMEs" (Comprehensive)

Minister Lee Young of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups held a press briefing on the 20th at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, explaining future policy directions.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dong-hyun] Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, pledged on the 20th to eradicate unfair trade practices that undermine the business motivation of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), such as technology theft. He also expressed his intention to pilot the delivery price linkage system in September to create conditions for win-win cooperation between large corporations and SMEs.

At a press briefing held at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeouido, Seoul, Minister Lee announced the contents of his recent work report to President Yoon Suk-yeol and future action plans. He stated that President Yoon emphasized ▲creating conditions for win-win cooperation in delivery prices ▲eradicating unfair trade practices such as technology theft ▲focused support for startup scale-up ▲alleviating financial and debt burdens of small business owners ▲revitalizing SME business succession, and announced implementation plans for each issue.

Eradication of Unfair Trade Practices Such as Technology Theft

Minister Lee promised to root out unfair trade practices that cause a decline in SME competitiveness. Among the policies he is determined to implement during his term are 'improvement of unfair trade' and 'deregulation.'

To prevent technology theft in advance, he plans to actively promote new systems introduced by the amendment of the Win-Win Cooperation Act in February, such as mandatory confidentiality agreements, easing of burden of proof, and punitive damages, targeting large corporations and their partners. In addition, when technology infringement occurs, the legal support team will promptly visit the site to provide in-depth legal advice and infringement relief consulting.

Minister Lee stated, "We will strengthen technology protection policy insurance to cover litigation costs for SMEs in case of technology infringement," and added, "We will also pursue ways to advance indicators that verify the level of technology protection."

Support for Startup Scale-up

Minister Lee promised to quickly establish a system that allows ventures and startups to scale up rapidly. This is in response to President Yoon's order to focus policy capabilities on funding, research and development (R&D), and market support so that startups can grow into strong small giants and global companies.

He emphasized, "We will build a one-stop support system that leads to regulatory innovation, new technology startups, private-led scale-up, and global market settlement," and added, "We will carry out proactive regulatory reforms rather than reforms based on notifications."

Minister Lee continued, "We plan to announce in September a scientific and robust regulatory innovation system to guarantee companies' challenging and creative activities," and added, "We will also establish a fund to promote investment in new industries."

He further stated, "We will strengthen the TIPS program where the private sector makes initial investments and the government provides follow-up support," and said, "We plan to elevate Korea as a global hub by enhancing global cooperation of ventures and startups and attracting excellent overseas talent and capital."

Alleviation of Financial and Debt Burdens for Small Business Owners

Minister Lee also promised various supports to alleviate the financial and debt burdens of small business owners affected by COVID-19. This includes emergency financial support such as special guarantees exceeding 13 trillion won and refinancing loans recently announced by the Financial Services Commission, as well as the New Start Fund.

He said, "The maturity extension and interest repayment deferral measures for small business owners will end on September 30," and added, "Since President Yoon emphasized a soft landing for small business owners after September, we will continuously communicate with the Chief Presidential Secretary for Economic Affairs and the Chairman of the Financial Services Commission to prepare countermeasures."

Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, held a press conference on the 20th at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeouido, Seoul, and announced the "New Government Core and Priority Task Implementation Plan."

Revitalization of SME Business Succession

Minister Lee emphasized the urgency of preventing the loss of technology and growth know-how through generational change as SME CEOs are aging. He stressed the need to establish a revitalization system that supports smooth SME and venture business succession and to expand innovation growth engines by improving sandbag regulations.

He said, "Until a few years ago, business succession was viewed negatively as inheritance of wealth," and added, "However, as SMEs face the worst manpower shortage, there is growing opinion that business succession is more necessary than ever to maintain employment stability and corporate sustainability."

Minister Lee continued, "The Ministry of SMEs and Startups is currently conducting surveys on business succession, collecting field opinions, and carrying out research projects," and stated, "We will work closely with the Ministry of Economy and Finance to prepare policies that ease excessive regulations hindering succession and consider expanding tax credit targets and limits."

Pilot Operation of Delivery Price Linkage System in September

Minister Lee promised to pilot the delivery price linkage system starting in September and separately pursue its legalization.

He said, "The delivery price linkage bill was proposed 14 years ago but has not progressed, and a culture of voluntary win-win cooperation has not been established in the market," and added, "I believe 14 years is enough time, and this time we will definitely legislate the delivery price linkage system."

Minister Lee further explained, "The President advised that it is not a strong law but a practical law that works on the ground," and added, "We will carefully consider every term and proceed with legislation."

Regarding the specific form of the linkage system, Minister Lee said, "We are discussing what the minimum mandatory enforcement conditions will be," and explained, "However, since there are so many cases by raw material item, we have no choice but to leave some degree of autonomy to companies."

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