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[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Paul Lee] The Fair Trade Commission has launched an on-site investigation into Sdij· Megastudy, a large cram school, and publishers of admission textbooks.
According to the industry on the 11th, the Fair Trade Commission has sent investigators to several Sdij· Megastudy institutes and two publishers, the Lee Gam-guk Language Education Institute and the Sangsang Korean Language Evaluation Institute, to collect data.
The FTC is known to be focusing on allegations of false and exaggerated advertisements (violation of the Display Advertising Act) and selling textbooks (violation of the Fair Trade Act).
Earlier, the Ministry of Education formed a pan-government response council involving the National Police Agency and the Fair Trade Commission at the end of last month and asked the FTC to investigate a total of 24 cases, including unfair advertisements (15 cases) and sales (9 cases) submitted to the Private Education Cartel and Irregularity Reporting Center by the 7th of this month. This included inflating the results of student entrance exams or promoting that the College Scholastic Ability Test participants participated in writing textbooks.
In addition, private institutes, instructors, and mock test companies have joined forces to sell textbooks, mock tests, and notes to students. Some academies even sold reading rooms or school meals. Unfairly selling other products or services constitutes a purchase coercion and can be punished for violating the Fair Trade Act.
The FTC may impose fines for unfair advertisements within 2% of related sales and 4% of related sales for unfair trade practices such as inserting and selling.
Alphabiz Reporter Paul Lee(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
