Lee Jin-sook, Chair of the Korea Communications Commission, to Soon Arrive at Office... Expectation for Normalization of KCC Operations (Update)

Returning After 170 Days... KCC Leadership Restored
Preparing for DDA Repeal, Big Tech Sanctions, and Other Pending Tasks
Opposition Offensive Unlikely to Cease... Concerns Over Escalating Conflict

The impeachment trial of Lee Jin-sook, Chairperson of the Korea Communications Commission (KCC), was dismissed by the Constitutional Court on the 23rd, effectively denying the opposition party's claim of the illegality of the KCC's 'dual leadership system.' With this, the KCC's operations, which had been in a dormant state, will be normalized, but political conflicts between the ruling and opposition parties are expected to intensify further.

Following the dismissal of the impeachment, Chairperson Lee is scheduled to return to work immediately by going to the Government Complex Gwacheon, where the KCC is located. This comes 174 days after the National Assembly passed the impeachment motion. During this period, the KCC was in a state of suspension, unable to properly deliberate and decide on major agendas under the 'single leadership system' led by Acting Chairperson Kim Tae-gyu.

The most urgent issue for the KCC is preventing user harm following the abolition of the Device Distribution Act (DDA). The DDA will be officially repealed starting July, and prior to this, there is a need to strengthen monitoring and inspections to prevent market disorder. In particular, with the upcoming launch of Samsung Electronics' 'Galaxy S25' series next month, the KCC has already urged users to be cautious of deceptive sales practices.

Furthermore, with the official repeal of the DDA, competition among mobile carriers is expected to be stimulated, contributing to the reduction of household communication expenses. Therefore, efforts will be needed to establish practical systems, including the revision of subordinate legislation.

The KCC is also preparing to focus on longstanding tasks such as terrestrial broadcasting license renewals, imposing fines for violations of in-app payment regulations by big tech companies, and protecting users from artificial intelligence (AI) services to prevent fake news.

An announcement is expected soon regarding whether various online video services (OTT) such as Netflix, TVING, and Google YouTube have violated the Telecommunications Business Act's prohibited acts, investigations into which began in December 2023. At that time, YouTube raised its premium subscription price by 43%, and Netflix effectively increased fees by halting new subscriptions to its Basic plan.

Lee Jin-sook, Chairperson of the Korea Communications Commission, Yonhap News Agency

Meanwhile, the opposition party's offensive, which had continued to push for the impeachment of the KCC Chairperson, has lost momentum. Since November 2023, there have been three impeachment attempts and three voluntary resignations concerning the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the KCC.

The opposition argued that Chairperson Lee violated the KCC Act by making decisions on major agendas such as appointing public broadcasting directors within the dual leadership system shortly after her inauguration in July last year. Chairperson Lee chose to confront the situation head-on to highlight the unfairness of the impeachment motion and to break the vicious cycle of 'impeachment motion-voluntary resignation.' This is the first impeachment trial case against a KCC Chairperson in the history of Korea's constitutional governance.

Moon Hyung-nam, a professor at the Department of Global Convergence Studies at Sookmyung Women's University, said, "With Chairperson Lee's immediate return to work, the normalization of the KCC is expected," adding, "Major issues such as terrestrial broadcasting license renewals and imposing fines on overseas big tech companies will be handled swiftly." However, he noted, "The opposition is likely to continue criticizing various decision-making processes of the KCC, which may deepen conflicts between the ruling and opposition parties," and added, "The ruling party will emphasize the stable operation of the KCC."

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