The culture minister ordered access to dozens of illegal content websites to be blocked immediately Monday as a new law designed to curb rampant online piracy of web-based comics and novels took effect. Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Chae Hwi-young took action against 34 copyright-infringing sites, including Newtoki, a major platform known for illegally distributing Korean webtoons and web novels, the ministry said. The move marks the first such measure under the revised Copyright Act, which allows the minister to immediately restrict access to illegal online content upon detection. The legislation went into effect Monday following several months of preparations. The government has stepped up efforts to protect intellectual property in one of the country’s fastest-growing cultural exports amid ongoing concerns that piracy sites undermine creators’ revenues and global competitiveness. The ministry plans to expand the number of sites subject to the emergency measure while closely monitoring whether operators of such platforms will attempt to evade enforcement by creating replacement
