Is Korea really marketing unlicensed products?

This is one issue I'm currently wondering: Unlicensed products in the Korean market. I recently discovered that Korea is producing merchandise without proper credit to the original sources from neighboring Japan or other countries, including anime and food. What's more, I've heard that Korea made cheap knock-offs as a result of cash during the aftermath of the Korean War. I have the video that shows proof of the unlicensed Korean products, and you'll be very amused when you see them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-CHPPmOG...

Here are my questions. Is Korea really marketing unlicensed products? Why is that? Is is true that cheap knock-offs of foreign merchandise is the result of the Korean War?

Korea is not marketing unlicensed products. The Koreans are making cheap knockoffs to make money and Government just doesn't have a strict law against it.

United States have started producing lots of knock offs in recent years like Bathing Apes (Japanese) and The North Face jackets.

Also Apple has recently copied their idea of Iphone from a Korean Company LG. Their phone is called Prada and it looks just like Apple's iphone except it was in production half a year before sold in Europe and Asia but not in the US. United States did nothing to stop the replication of Prada phone.

Vietnam makes knockoffs, United States make knock offs, Japan does, Britain does and most other countries around the world.

And that explains that Knock-offs of foreign merchandises is not the result of the Korean War. It's just something everyone does and it doesn't matter where you live.

that's were i bought my wife =]

I think that video is one of the many anti-Korea stuffs uploaded on youtube. I guess those videos are being made and uploaded just to create bad image about Korea.

Anyway, those images are very outdated. Those products were made at least 20 to 30 years ago. At that time, there existed some copy products in Korea. But today we pay for the license. If you sell pirated items, you can be sent to jail.

To Joriental:

So are you interested in those videos? ^^

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nv3JzTyNy...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSBMc9Z5o...

Now look at the related videos and replies on the page. And see what kind of people leave comments on such videos. Are they just "real world reports based on facts"?

Yes, Korea markets unlicensed products. It's widespread among clothing brands, Disney, sports apparel, bootleg DVDs and CDs, jewelery and more. The knock-offs are cheap so people buy them.
The Koreans hawking the merchandise don't care about licenses...they care about making money.

They market them all of the time and it is not a result of the Korean war, it is a result of lax copyright laws and lax enforcement of existing laws. It is not like you have to go down a back alley to locate the stores, they are in the main shopping districts and sometimes look legitimate. You do not know the truth until the sole of your Nike falls off in the summer heat.

im guessing you must be japanese.... dispicable.

Yes you can buy unlicensed products in Seoul in the open. You can go to Yongsan electronics market and buy DVD's there are electronics shops that will upgrade your Playstation to play copied game which you can purchase for about 5 dollars. This is not done by big corporations but by small vendors, less that 10 employees. The government does not seem to be too concerned about this practice.
Also if you have a purse you want, say Donna Karon or whatever. There are places in Itaewon that can make a good knock off just from the picture.
Of course all of this stuff is illegal to bring to the US.
Bottom line. It does occur, but is not a huge contributor to Korea's GNP. Kind of a drop in the bucket.

I bought a laptop from a major South Korea electronics store, with branches around the country. I asked for English OS on the computer and they said it was no problem. When I got the laptop, they had installed all bootleg programs from Microsoft Office to Roxio... No wonder it was, "No problem." When I returned it, they said that every Korean knows that they install bootleg software on their computers when special requests are made, particularly when you want them in English. Now, if you buy a computer with Korea OS, that will be legit 99% of the time, although I have heard of Korean OS being bootleg on brand new systems as well.

Interesting post again. Are you Japanese?

I don't think it is old day's story. And it is not about an anti-Korea stuff, but just a report in the real world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAVeFCVev...
(led to a lawsuit)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJLRGDmxh...
(Korean people's comment after 06:15 is hilarious.)

Anyway I don't leave personal comment but facts.