GPS Drawing, Copyright Recognized for the First Time

Published 15 Jul.2024 13:58(KST)

.GPX File Storing Coordinates While Running
Copyright Commission Registers ‘Gangajireon’
Secondary Work Recognition Not Granted but
New Chapter Opened for IT-Based Artistic Activities

‘GPS Drawing,’ which combines information technology (IT), exercise, and elements of art, has been recognized as a copyrighted work for the first time.

Deoksu Law Firm (CEO Kim Hyung-tae) announced on the 12th that the Korea Copyright Commission (Chairman Kang Seok-won) recognized the GPS drawing ‘Gangajirun’ as a copyrighted work in the form of an edited work on May 29.

The GPS drawing artwork 'Gangajireon', the first in Korea to be registered for copyright with the Korea Copyright Commission. [Image source=Deoksu Law Firm]

Accordingly, ‘Gangajirun’ has been officially registered as a copyrighted work.

This is the first time that a GPS drawing has been registered as a copyrighted work in Korea. With the recognition of copyright for GPS drawings, the protection of creators’ rights is expected to be significantly strengthened. ‘GPS Drawing (Global Positioning System Drawing)’ refers to the act of creating specific images or text artworks by following a pre-planned route using a GPS device.

Although GPS drawing is still unfamiliar in Korea, this activity dates back 10 years.

British artists Jeremy Wood and Hugh Pryor, who have been working since 2000, are considered pioneers. They drew a 20 km butterfly near Nottingham, London, using GPS devices. The large cruise drawn by cycling back and forth along Brighton Beach was 68 km long, and the letters ‘IF’ written while running in southern England reached 112 km.

In Korea, GPS drawing is rapidly increasing along with the popularization of smartphones. Released in 2020, Gangajirun is a course running through Gyeongbokgung Palace, Bukchon Hanok Village, Sewoon Shopping Center, Cheonggyecheon, and Gwanghwamun areas in Jongno, Seoul. It is especially loved among runners, who call it ‘Daengdaengrun.’

Attorney Kim Sang-hyun (37, 6th Bar Exam), who represented the copyright registration of ‘Gangajirun,’ said, “As GPS drawing creators share their running routes on social media, cases of outdoor brand companies using GPS drawings for commercial purposes without permission are increasing. To establish presumed rights over the creations, ensure safe transactions, and facilitate legal protection in case of copyright infringement, we applied for copyright registration of ‘Gangajirun’ with the Korea Copyright Commission.”

Attorney Kim explained, “Based on the fact that GPS receivers record latitude, longitude, and altitude coordinate information of locations by time and store it as data, the ‘.?GPX’ data file visualizing the outline of a dog shape was considered an ‘edited work’ under Article 2, Clause 18 of the Copyright Act.”

An edited work refers to a work with creativity in the selection, arrangement, or composition of materials.

However, ‘Gangajirun’ was not recognized as a secondary copyrighted work in the form of a fine art work. The Copyright Commission judged, “The ‘dog’ shape drawn on the GPS receiver, based on the edited work created by the creator’s selection, arrangement, and composition of coordinate information materials, cannot be regarded as a fine art work with creativity in itself.”

Attorney Kim said, “In the United States, GPS drawing is recognized as a form of artwork. It is necessary to recognize the visualized shapes created by GPS receivers themselves as secondary copyrighted works so that artists’ creative activities can be protected as individual works.”