"They even uploaded Kian84's webtoon illegally"... Newtoki, which made an estimated 40 billion won a month in illicit profits, shuts down voluntarily
- Input
- 2026-04-28 07:39:20
- Updated
- 2026-04-28 07:39:20
[The Financial News] Newtoki, the country's largest illegal webtoon-sharing site, has voluntarily shut down its service.
The operator of Newtoki announced on the site on the 27th that it would "end the service." It also said that "all data generated during use of the service will be deleted in bulk."
It added that there are "no plans to resume the service in the future" and warned that "all sites using similar names, such as Newtoki, Manatoki and Booktoki, are impersonation sites unrelated to this service, so please be careful."
Newtoki began operating in 2018 and has illegally distributed a range of content, including webtoons through Newtoki, web novels through Booktoki and Japanese manga through Manatoki.
In the process, works by popular creators such as Kian84 were found to have been distributed without permission. The industry estimates that Newtoki generated about 40 billion won in illicit monthly revenue.
Authorities also struggled to punish the site's operator. The operator was a Korean who naturalized in Japan in 2022, and the comics and webtoon industry urged the Japanese government to extradite the fugitive through petitions and rallies.
Industry observers say Newtoki may have moved to shut down preemptively after the government signaled a tough response to illegal copyright-infringing sites next month.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) has said that, under revisions to the Copyright Act, it will implement the Emergency Blocking System for Illegal Websites starting on the 11th of next month, allowing illegal sites to be blocked immediately upon discovery without a complicated review process.
Kim Gyu-nam, vice president of WEBTOON, stressed, "It should not end just because they ran away. This policy change has strengthened penalties, and I hope it is actually enforced so that it can lead to serious punishment."
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gaa1003@fnnews.com An Ga-eul Reporter