FTC to inspect live commerce operators' business practices

• Published date: 21 February 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

The country's antitrust agency will inspect the business practices of Naver, Kakao and other live commerce operators to check whether they treat their suppliers and consumers unfairly, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said Monday.

The agency plans to scrutinize the terms and conditions in the rapidly growing distribution sector, which includes live commerce and subscription services, officials said.

Live commerce is attracting attention as a new distribution channel with low entry barriers that enables buyers and sellers to communicate in real time through video or text chat. But consumer complaints are also on the rise as the number of users increases and the FTC aims to look out for any unfair practices.

Naver, Kakao, Coupang, Baedal Minjok and Grip, which are representative platform operators in the live...