KIPO Seizes Over 9,000 Counterfeit Items on Myeongdong Street

A large quantity of counterfeit K-pop idol goods and famous character products were seized during a crackdown on the Myeongdong tourist street in Seoul.

The Trademark Special Judicial Police of the Korean Intellectual Property Office announced on the 2nd that last month, they seized over 9,000 counterfeit items from two stores selling K-pop and character goods, and booked four individuals including Mr. A (47) without detention on charges of violating the Trademark Act for distributing and selling counterfeit products.

According to the trademark police, Mr. A and others were caught selling counterfeit goods such as photocard, keychains, and bromides of K-pop idols like BTS and NewJeans, as well as bedding, dolls, keychains, phone grips, and name tags featuring famous characters like Pok?mon, Catch! Tini Ping, and Hello Kitty at offline stores.

The trademark police conducted a focused crackdown on the Myeongdong street ahead of the upcoming golden holidays this month. Anticipating an increase in domestic and international tourists visiting Myeongdong, a representative Korean Wave street, during holidays such as Japan’s Golden Week and China’s Labor Day, they expected a surge in counterfeit product sales and thus intensified enforcement.

Counterfeit goods of BTS and other K-pop idol merchandise seized by the Patent Office's trademark police on the streets of Myeongdong. Provided by the Patent Office

The counterfeit K-pop goods and famous character products seized during the crackdown were mainly character stationery and bedding items frequently purchased by children and adolescents in daily life. Investigations revealed that most of the confiscated products had not undergone KC certification or safety verification procedures.

Since the main consumers, children and adolescents, could be exposed to harmful substances, the distribution of counterfeit products raises concerns and anxiety regarding public health and safety.

The trademark police are currently conducting precise component analyses on some of the seized counterfeit products by requesting assistance from the National Forensic Service. They are also investigating the scale of counterfeit product distribution before and during the crackdown involving Mr. A and others.

Park Ju-yeon, head of the Trademark Police at the Korean Intellectual Property Office, stated, “The distribution of counterfeit products harms public health and safety and can damage the national image. The Korean Intellectual Property Office will continue on-site crackdowns to eradicate the distribution of counterfeit goods. We urge the public to be especially cautious not to purchase counterfeit products that do not guarantee safety.”

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