South Korea Hits Hard Against Online Piracy: Operator of Popular Pirate Site Gets 3-Year Sentence
- Oliver Walsh
- Jun 11
- 1 min read
In a significant crackdown on digital piracy, a South Korean court has handed down a three-year prison sentence to the operator of NunuTV (also known as NooNooTV), once the country’s largest illegal streaming service.
What Was NunuTV?
Launched in June 2021, NunuTV quickly gained a reputation as a household name in piracy, attracting tens of millions of visitors per month and accumulating over 1.5 billion views of pirated movies and TV shows.
Enforcement Efforts
The site managed to dodge blocks by shifting domains and servers internationally—from the Dominican Republic to Paraguay—and employed VPNs, overseas payment systems, and cryptocurrencies.
A coalition of major media players formed the Video Copyright Protection Council (VCPC), filing a criminal complaint and seeking $3.7 billion in damages. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also launched a new piracy investigation unit. Interpol also joined the effort under its I-SOP initiative.
The Verdict
Operator: Person "A".
Sentence: 3 years in prison.
Fine: 700 million KRW (~US$ 512,000).
Judge Koh Young-sik: described the crime as a “systematic, profit-driven copyright infringement” that undermines cultural creativity.
Wider Impact
The collapse of NunuTV spurred a rise in legitimate streaming users in South Korea, according to Tving. Demonstrating the benefits of coordinated public and private sector action against pirate site operators.
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