On the 29th, the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee passed a motion during a plenary session requesting the attendance of witnesses and testifiers for the 2026 parliamentary audit. Among those selected, not a single figure is from the gaming industry.
The Culture Committee is the standing committee overseeing the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism—the government ministry in charge of the gaming industry—as well as affiliated agencies such as the Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC) and the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA). Key game policy issues are typically addressed during this committee's annual parliamentary audit. This year, however, no gaming industry figures will take the witness stand before the Culture Committee.
A witness with ties to the gaming industry will instead appear before the Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee. Google Korea President Yoon Koo will appear as a witness at the Science and ICT Committee's parliamentary audit on October 6. The grounds for questioning include controversies over app market unfair practices, price discrepancies in YouTube subscription fees, and data leaks involving victims of digital sex crimes. Google Play serves as a primary channel through which domestic mobile games are distributed and payments are processed. As such, inquiries surrounding app market commissions and payment policies directly touch upon game developers' revenue structures.
Standing committees that have already passed attendance motions can still add witnesses. Under laws governing parliamentary audits, summonses for witnesses and testifiers must be delivered at least 7 days before their required appearance date. Within this timeframe, additional witnesses and testifiers can be approved following committee discussions.
The 2026 parliamentary audit will run from October 6 to 27. The Culture Committee will begin auditing agencies under its jurisdiction starting with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the 7th, with the comprehensive audit scheduled for the 23rd.
