Tough New Rules for Talent Agencies

[footballfina.livejournal.com]

The government is cracking down on entertainment agencies, with legislation passing Tuesday that will restrict who can create new companies.

Under the law, new agencies will need to get approval from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism before they recruit trainees. Founders of new entertainment agencies will be required to have at least four years of experience in the industry, and those who have a criminal record will come under tighter scrutiny.

In addition, stricter rules protecting underage trainees will prevent them from training between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. or for more than 46 hours per week.

“With these new rules, we will have a healthier entertainment industry and make the overall pop culture and related businesses develop by restricting the number of agencies,” said the ministry in a statement. “We will continue working to improve regulations in the coming days.”

The new measures will be reviewed in a cabinet meeting soon and will become effective six months after the review is completed.

Source: Lee Sun-min @ koreajoongangdaily

Comments

[tlict.livejournal.com]

woah. aren't you glad win's over, yanghyunsucks? anyway, the trainees will still practice by themselves even if they weren't allowed, but good going korea, i guess.

[anconeous.livejournal.com]

Good luck to them trying to enforce that no practicing after 10 rule when apparently most trainees themselves willingly practice late at night. Competition among trainees is intense.

[babyonions.livejournal.com]

It will become effective in sex months, just enough time for the new SM girl group to practice 24 h a day starting today and debut.

[waterpulse.livejournal.com]

Freudian slip? :p

[babyonions.livejournal.com]

I had to read it 3 times to see it loool I must be frustrated.

[ashiva.livejournal.com]

LMAO

[shintotchi.livejournal.com]

This is excellent. I really hope they follow through with this (unlike those damn stalker laws that were supposed to pop up in 2013. T_T )

[anathema-switch.livejournal.com]

I think that requiring approval / license to recruit trainees is great! However a lot of people are already in hagwons instead of actual companies so there's still so room for exploitation / companies might just have informal trainees.

[torontok.livejournal.com]

I cant imagine how enforcement will be done for this.Random inspectors?

[toshi830.livejournal.com]

There's probably going to be loopholes and the big companies will find ways to work around them to work trainees

[akillarian.livejournal.com]

Most trainees may be willing to work and train late until the night and even till 3AM. But how much were their willingness the results of unspoken expectations from the companies and the public? When certain expectations are the norms and almost everyone before them have been acting according to these expectation for decades and centuries, they themselves feel the need to train with only as little as 3 hours of sleep to meet these expectations.

I came from an SEA country and alot of SEA countries have all these unspoken expectations that are never written down in contracts but you have to do follow anyway or be the odd one out or you are considered not good enough or you have low motivation, ect.

At least with the new rules, maybe half a decade from now, we won't hear of idols passing out backstage and their companies don't even bother to let them see doctors right away.

[1111-am.livejournal.com]

I wonder how they chose 46 hours a week and not 40. They'd be putting in more hours than a working adult. Unless if the common work week over in Korea is 46 hours instead of 40 (not counting overtime though, which I guess is common) :/

[bauci.livejournal.com]

Won't trainees just skip from school time then, if they can't get enough hours during night?

[ashiva.livejournal.com]

While I'm sure at least big companies will kick out their trainees by 10 o'clock from their building in order to follow the law, the trainees will probably just continue practising somewhere else in order not to get cut out in next monthly trainee review. But I'm glad setting up new agencies will be more overseen process.

[suxaholic.livejournal.com]

don't know if this will work but it's bout time Korea

[yakuniku-8.livejournal.com]

Good news! Maybe Korea realised it doesn't give a good image of the country, or maybe it was because of the recent trials...

[hitthoselightz.livejournal.com]

sounds good in theory but not necessarily in practice bc most companies will still find a way around it

also, since we seem to be taking baby steps, can we have some type of law to stop/limit sasaengs pls and ty

[citrine047.livejournal.com]

can we have some type of law to stop/limit sasaengs pls and ty
AMEN.
came here to say that actually.

[nzpnkrckrgrl.livejournal.com]

Restricting practices won't work. Considering they coming in everyday and practice almost everyday. So 46 hours.... probably sounds little to trainees.
The license to set up agencies sounds like a great idea. I just hate the news of sexual favours etc happening.

Good ideas but I don't see it practical. All you get is a piece of paper and that's it. Not gonna stop trainee practicing less or employees doing nasty things.

[amandaplan.livejournal.com]

im sure the companies will strongly encourage any private practice in their own time that is "voluntary" or smth.

[frantastic.livejournal.com]

I just read on NB that it's 35 hours a week and they can still work if they have parental consent

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

good idea but practically worthless without inspectors

[himenojigoku.livejournal.com]

I have a lot of doubts about this but good for them for trying!

[jia-zhang.livejournal.com]

well that's all fine and dandy but who's going to enforce this shit, the idol police? i just don't see trainees trying to make it going home even when they are told to. this is kind of a naive set of rules; instead, they should be working the issue of stalking with idols and more contract issues.