South Korean author indicted for manipulating bestseller rankings

A famous essay author and a former publishing representative have been indicted for violating the Publishing Culture Industry Promotion Act by manipulating bestseller rankings through large-scale book hoarding.

Between March and July 2024, the pair allegedly purchased 1,631 copies of a new book across various offline locations of a major bookstore chain to artificially inflate its sales. According to the Goyang Branch of the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors' Office, the author provided the funds while the representative traveled to different stores to make the purchases. This tactic was used to avoid detection; the group reportedly used methods such as having different staff members purchase books or claiming to buy damaged copies to hide the bulk buying.

The hoarded volume accounted for approximately 14% of the book's total sales of 11,135 copies, successfully raising its weekly bestseller ranking from the 3rd or 4th position to the 2nd or 3rd. The investigation highlighted a loophole in the ranking system: while online purchases can be monitored via member data, there are currently few mechanisms to detect mass purchases made by non-members at physical retail locations.