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(Seoul=Yonhap Infomax) Pil Joong Jeong – The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) announced on the 25th that it has imposed a corrective order and a fine of 456 million won ($345,000) on DN Automotive Co. for violations of the Subcontracting Act, including the unlawful use of technical data.
DN Automotive Co. is a South Korean manufacturer specializing in vibration-damping components that reduce noise and vibration in automotive engines, transmissions, and bodies, thereby improving ride comfort and durability.
According to the FTC, DN Automotive commissioned subcontractors to produce molds necessary for automotive parts manufacturing and, as a condition for interim or final payments, demanded and received 12 sets of mold blueprints from these subcontractors.
Mold blueprints are design documents that detail the structure, format, dimensions, and materials of molds required for product manufacturing, and are considered core technical data of subcontractors.
The FTC stated that requests for technical data must be limited to the minimum necessary scope. DN Automotive’s justification—such as understanding the current status or maintaining molds—was not deemed a legitimate reason for demanding the blueprints.
Furthermore, DN Automotive provided three of the received mold blueprints to third-party competing subcontractors without consulting the original subcontractors, thereby misappropriating their technical data.
The FTC explained that this constitutes a violation, as it exceeds the agreed purpose and scope of use for the acquired technical data.
joongjp@yna.co.kr
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