Korea’s current system for determining copyright royalties has played a role in preventing monopolistic practices by copyright trust management organizations and in maintaining fair-trade practices. The system has functioned as a form of government intervention aimed at balancing the conflicting interests of copyright holders and users, while also supporting the broader goal of advancing the cultural industries. However, in today’s rapidly evolving environment—marked by digital innovation, diversification of media content, and the rise of platform-based industries—the existing state-approval mechanism is criticized for its inflexibility, its constraints on service innovation, and its potential to undermine the core values of copyright, namely autonomy and creativity.

In particular, the principle that prices in the private sector should primarily be determined through free market negotiations is gaining support. The current state-driven approval process for copyright royalties imposes excessive administrative burdens, delays, and uncertainty. Paradoxically, by restricting the autonomy of contractual relationships between rights holders and users, the system may generate more disputes and unnecessary social costs.

This study diagnoses the structural problems inherent in the current royalty determination system and, from a practitioner’s perspective, presents practical directions for improvement by conducting a comparative legal analysis of copyright royalty determination frameworks in major jurisdictions, including Japan, the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States, and Canada.