Republic of Korea: Announced Korea Communications Commission investigation into Naver for alleged discriminatory conduct by its news algorithm

On 2 July 2023, the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) announced its investigation into Naver, an online platform and search engine, for alleged discriminatory conduct through its artificial intelligence-based news algorithm, in violation of the Telecommunications Business Act. In particular, Naver is alleged to have given an unfair advantage to certain news providers in its AI-powered news feed by applying artificial popularity indicators to certain news agencies. If the investigation confirms the violations, the KCC would be able to impose penalties, including fines of up to 3% of the average annual sales revenue connected to the service.