"Baek Jong-won’s Significant Support Led to Deopjukjip Regaining Trademark Rights After 3 Years"

End of 3-Year Trademark Dispute Over Deopjuk
Baek Jong-won Continues Support

In 2020, the owner of a Deopjuk restaurant in Pohang, who introduced the 'Deopjuk' menu on SBS's 'Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant' and had the idea stolen, finally obtained the trademark after more than three years of plagiarism controversy and legal disputes. The Deopjuk restaurant owner stated that Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea, played a significant role in supporting the trademark application until the end.

Choi Min-a, the owner of the Pohang Deopjuk restaurant, announced on Instagram on the 28th, "The trademark application has finally been approved. After a long wait of three years and with the help of many people, the trademark registration certificate has finally come to me."

Photo by Yonhap News

Choi said, "The trademark that I was unable to prepare due to my ignorance resulted in an unbearable outcome with late regrets, but thanks to a lot of time and the help of many people, I was able to recover it," and added that she obtained trademark rights for ▲theShinchon’s Deopjuk ▲Somun Deopjuk ▲Siso Deopjuk ▲Omeu Deopjuk.

Choi expressed her gratitude, saying, "I thank the wonderful CEO Baek Jong-won who took care and helped me until the end."

Many consumers who watched the program also supported Choi. She conveyed her feelings, saying, "I sincerely thank the many unknown people who called the Patent Office, left messages, and personally stood by my side."

Earlier, Choi appeared on SBS's 'Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant' in 2020 and introduced menus such as 'Siso (spinach + beef) Deopjuk' and 'Somun (sea snail + octopus) Deopjuk.' The menu was inspired by rice bowls topped with seafood, vegetables, or meat, but used porridge instead of rice.

Photo by SBS broadcast screen capture

After the broadcast aired, in early September, a food service company B launched a brand that copied the name and form of Deopjuk and started franchise operations. The menu names were also cleverly mixed with the program title and Choi's menu names, such as 'Alley Sniper Siso Deopjuk' and 'Alley Sniper Somun Deopjuk,' blatantly targeting viewers of the program.

Choi, the creator of Deopjuk, appealed on Instagram, "Please do not steal my Deopjuk. Please," and consumers retaliated on her behalf by leaving star ratings and reviews for the company. Eventually, the company discontinued the service.

In October 2021, CEO Baek visited Choi again, emphasizing, "We need to set a good precedent," and worked hard to resolve the issue. At that time, CEO Baek encouraged Choi, saying, "I will fight on your behalf, so don't worry. I will help in any way I can regardless of the broadcast."

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