The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister PARK Bo Gyoon, MCST) together with the Korea Copyright Protection Agency (President PARK Jung Youl, KCOPA) and the Korea Copyright Commission (Chairman CHOI Byung Goo, KCC) published A Guide to Copyright and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT) Trading. Amid the emergence of NFTs as an attractive market with new values, there is still a lack of understanding on the unique traits and environment of the NFT market.

The newly published guide on NFT trading will provide information on the important matters to keep in mind within the scope of the current copyright law so that people who trade and are involved in NFT marketplaces will not face any unfavorable consequences. The guide has four parts: sellers; marketplaces; buyers; and right holders. One of the key points across the guide is that copyright infringement may occur if a person issues an NFT or uses a work linked to an NFT without obtaining or licensing the copyright concerned. Therefore, when selling an NFT, a person must be transferred with the copyright of the linked work or obtain permission to use it, and must check the copyright-related matters before purchasing it. In addition, it is desirable for a market to notify its users in advance about any copyright-related matters to prevent unnecessary disputes.

Along with the guide, the KCOPA and the KCC will provide a consulting service to individuals who are in the field of NFT markets. Moreover, to continue to respond to the development of the NFT markets in  the future, the Ministry will actively work on the methods of reasonable interpretation of the Copyright Act regarding NFTs through the Council on Expanded Virtual Market (Metaverse) and NFTs. This guide is also available on the official websites of the MCST (www.mcst.go.kr), the KCOPA (www.kcopa.or.kr), and the KCC (www.copyright.or.kr).