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Photo = Yonhap news |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] Wemade has won the appellate retrial in its long-standing copyright dispute with Actoz Soft over the hit MMORPG Legend of Mir 2. The Seoul High Court dismissed Actoz Soft’s claims in full and upheld Wemade’s position regarding both copyright succession and licensing rights in China.
This retrial followed a June 2024 ruling by the Supreme Court of Korea, which had returned the case to the appellate court for reexamination under Chinese law, particularly concerning:
Whether copyright infringement occurred in China, and
The legitimacy of Wemade’s copyright succession via a corporate spin-off.
The Seoul High Court ruled that even under Chinese legal standards, Wemade’s transfer of Legend of Mir 2 intellectual property (IP) to its subsidiary Wemade IP through a physical spin-off was valid and lawful. As a result, the legitimacy of Mir-related IP licensing agreements in China was also upheld.
In its ruling, the court rejected Actoz Soft’s claim that licensing revenue should be split 50:50, instead maintaining the 80:20 revenue share in favor of Wemade—a ratio agreed upon by both parties in a prior settlement. Wemade had already paid approximately KRW 4.5 billion in royalties to Actoz Soft in 2019 under this agreement.
This decision strengthens Wemade’s legal standing and licensing rights for Legend of Mir 2 in the Chinese market, one of the world’s largest for online games.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
