The Korea Communications Commission (Chairman Lee Dong-kwan) announced that it will conduct a fact-finding investigation into Naver's news service for violations of prohibited acts, such as unfair discrimination against specific users and unreasonable restrictions, and will impose maximum fines and file criminal charges if suspicions are confirmed.

The Korea Communications Commission announced that it will begin an investigation on September 25 to confirm whether Naver News Service violated the Telecommunications Business Act.

Since July 5, the Korea Communications Commission has been conducting an on-site inspection of Naver's news service to determine whether it violates the Telecommunications Business Act.

As a result of the on-site inspection, it was determined that Naver may have violated the prohibited acts regulations by △unfairly discriminating against certain users, △unfairly imposing unreasonable conditions or restrictions, and △failing to notify important matters. Accordingly, an on-site investigation of Naver and other fact-finding investigations were launched.

Naver, as the largest search portal operator in Korea, has a significant impact on the media environment. In particular, it has a monopoly on the news market with a 66.7% market share, and thus, there has been ongoing controversy over its social responsibility and fairness.

In particular, news algorithms have been directly linked to the issue of media companies' involvement in article arrangement, and have been pointed out as a cause of bias in favor of certain media companies. As a result, problems of discrimination against businesses and distortion of public opinion have been pointed out, an on-site inspection has been launched.

If the investigation results show that Naver News Service artificially intervened in search results and provided discriminatory services to media outlets, this can be considered a serious violation of the Telecommunications Business Act.

Through this fact-finding investigation, the Korea Communications Commission has found that Naver We plan to clarify whether the same act constitutes a prohibited act under the Telecommunications Business Act, and if a violation is confirmed, we plan to take strict and decisive action in accordance with the law, including imposing a maximum fine (1/100 of the relevant sales) and filing a criminal complaint.

Meanwhile, the Korea Communications Commission has issued a stern warning to Naver for its response to past on-site inspections by delaying or failing to submit investigation materials, and plans to take possible legal action, including imposing a fine for non-compliance, if Naver continues to obstruct investigations during the future fact-finding process.

The Korea Communications Commission plans to actively pursue deregulation to strengthen the competitiveness of the broadcasting and communications industry, while also ensuring user rights and creating a fair media environment through strict enforcement of the law against illegal activities.