Under Art. 13 of the Act on the Promotion of Newspapers, a person who is not a national of Korea shall not be qualified as a publisher or editor of an online newspaper or as a news article layout manager of an online news service. This requirement has been in place since 2009.

Per Art. 5 of the Location Information Use and Protection Act, any person who intends to engage in location information business shall obtain permission from the Korea Communications Commission. According to Art. 18 of the Act, even if permitted to do such business, location information providers or location-based service providers cannot collect location information of individuals without individuals' consent. It is reported that, although a supplier may export location information once acquiring a permit, Korea has never approved such a permit despite numerous applications by foreign suppliers over the past decade.

The licensing requirements for Internet multimedia broadcasting are prescribed in Arts. 4 and 18 of the Internet Multimedia Broadcasting Business Act. The term “Internet multimedia broadcasting” refers to a form of broadcasting that provides a variety of content, including data, images, voice, audio signals and electronic commerce services, as well as real-time broadcast programmes, to users through television receivers. This service is delivered by means of a bidirectional Internet protocol operating over a broadband integrated services digital network, which ensures consistency in the quality of service.

Art. 13 of Act No. 18813 mandates that companies with national core and strategic technologies, as prescribed in the National Core Technology list, must obtain approval from the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy before being acquired by or merging with a foreign company, or entering into a joint venture with one. These are referred to as "National High-Tech Strategic Technology" and include, among others, semiconductor companies.

In January 2023, the Korean Ministry of Science and Technology Information and Communication issued a notice of implementation and adopted an amendment to the Cloud Security Assurance Program (CSAP). Under the amendment, it is reported that, to obtain CSAP certification from the Korea Internet and Security Agency (KISA), a service provider’s cloud computing infrastructure, associated data, backup systems, as well as management and operational personnel, must all be located within Korea.

Under Art. 25 of the Patent Law, non-resident foreigners can only obtain patents if their home countries provide reciprocal treatment to Korean nationals or if a treaty or convention with Korea exists, following the reciprocity principle. Additionally, Art. 5 stipulates that individuals without a domicile or place of business in Korea cannot initiate patent-related procedures or file legal proceedings against administrative decisions unless represented by a patent attorney or agent based in Korea. Finally, Art. 201 requires patent applications to include a Korean translation of key documents, such as the abstract, description of the invention, claims, and titles of drawings, among others.

Korea is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Korea maintains a well‑defined framework of copyright exceptions modelled on the doctrine of fair use, permitting third parties to use copyrighted works lawfully without prior authorisation. Art. 35‑5 (Fair Use of Works) of the Copyright Act provides that such use is permissible where it does not unreasonably prejudice the author’s legitimate interests or conflict with the normal exploitation of the work. In assessing whether a particular use satisfies this standard, the Act requires consideration of the purpose and character of the use, the nature and purpose of the work, the amount and substantiality of the portion used relative to the whole, and the effect of the use on both the existing and potential market or value of the work. Further limitations on authors’ economic rights are set out in Arts. 23 to 35‑4 and 101‑3 to 101‑5 of the Act.

Korea has adopted the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Korea has adopted the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

The Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act provides a framework for the effective protection of trade secrets. According to Art.1 of the Act, trade secrets are defined as "information, including a production method, sale method, useful technical or business information for business activity, that is not known publicly, is the subject of considerable effort to maintain its secrecy and has independent economic value. The law (chapter 2) contains provisions for the protection of trade secrets, such as an injunction against infringement, liability for damages, and restoration of reputation.

There is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Korea to deliver telecom services to end users. It is practiced in the mobile sector and in the fixed sector based on commercial agreements.

Art. 8.1 of the Telecommunications Business Act stipulates that foreign governments or foreign nationals may collectively hold no more than 49% of the total issued shares of a facilities‑based telecommunications business operator that satisfies the criteria prescribed by Presidential Decree regarding the type, installation area and other characteristics of telecommunications line equipment. Under Art. 2.11, a “facilities‑based telecommunications service” is a service that transmits or receives voice, data, images and similar content without altering their form or substance and leases telecommunications line equipment to enable such transmission or reception, including services such as telephony and Internet connectivity.

It is reported that the government holds an equity stake in the telecommunications firm KT Corporation, with the National Pension Service currently owning 7.77% of the company.

Korea does not mandate functional separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, there is an obligation of accounting separation.