Prosecutors said Thursday they have rejected an accusation that a local pop singer illegally downloaded a Hollywood film, saying the accuser has no legal right to seek criminal punishment for such a behavior.
A conservative civic group filed a complaint with the prosecution on Feb. 23, demanding an investigation into singer Kim Jang-hoon’s alleged copyright infringement.
The move came five days after Kim posted on Twitter that he downloaded the recently released Hollywood action movie “Taken 3.”
Dropping the charge against the singer, prosecutors said that the accuser is not entitled to seek any legal punishment for Kim’s behavior because copyright infringement in principle is an offense subject to a complaint from the copyright holder.
“Kim was booked as a third person reported his offense (to the authorities),” a prosecution official said.
Judicial sources said it would also be hard to criminally punish him, given the prosecution’s practice of showing leniency to individuals who illegally downloaded movie films for personal use while punishing those who massively spread files to make profits.
After his tweet came under fire, Kim wrote apologies saying he thought the download was legal because he paid money.
In South Korea, copyright infringement carries a maximum prison sentence of five years or a fine of up to 50 million won ($44,700). (Yonhap)
