Nexon is one of the largest MMO companies in South Korea and is currently fighting against corrupt employees. One case involves leaks, while the other concerns illegally sold vouchers.
What is happening at Nexon? Nexon distributes Dungeon Fighter Online, one of the most successful PC games in the world. But mobile games are also part of the company’s portfolio.
However, in connection with the latest game Counterside, which was released in February, two incidents occurred:
- On one hand, an employee is said to have illegally sold vouchers for the game that were actually intended for employees and promotional purposes.
- On the other hand, details about future updates of the game were leaked in chats.
The problems became public on February 18, and on February 26 there was a final statement from Nexon regarding the incident. Further details about the punishment of the employees were mentioned therein.
Fines and Ethics Training
What happened with the vouchers? The Korean company confirmed that there was an incident involving the vouchers. A single employee from the development studio is said to have sold them illegally.
This employee made around 8,000 Korean won from his actions, which is approximately $9.20. This money has been secured by Nexon.
The employee was suspended during the investigation but is now allowed to return to work. However, there was a fine that was higher than a monthly income. According to Nexon, this was the maximum legally possible punishment.
Additionally, there is to be an “ethics training” for the entire department to prevent such behavior in the future.
What about the leaks? The leaks regarding Counterside, which turned out to be false, appear to have been published not by an employee of Nexon, but by an outside person who posed as an employee.
Nevertheless, the Korean company wants to take action against such conduct and has initiated police investigations.
Nexon also promises players to implement a better communication policy regarding their games in the future to make such leaks unnecessary.
Bribery of Lawyers and Sale in 2019
What stir has there been at Nexon? The incident with the employees is not the first controversy that Nexon has faced. In 2016, there was an indictment against Nexon’s co-founder, Kim Jung-Ju.
He is said to have bribed a prosecutor between 2005 and 2014 with Korean currency worth $800,000. However, the gaming company distanced itself from the incident as it only referred to the individual or the company NXC, which does own significant shares in Nexon.
What happened in 2019? Last year, there was the announcement that Kim Jung-Ju wants to part with his shares. At that time, he still owned 98.64% of the company.
So far, however, it seems that there is still no buyer.
Another Korean company, Pearl Abyss, decided in 2019 to really get involved in the MMO market. The developer of Black Desert has announced 4 new MMOs:
