Did Video Kill the Radio Star? The Endgame of a Ten-Year War Between LawTalk and the Korean Bar Association

Hong Lee
Additional contact information
Hong Lee: Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade

Industrial Economic Review from Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade

Abstract: Digitization has enabled two-sided platforms to reshape search and access in professional service markets long coordinated by incumbent associations. This paper examines the decade-long conflict between LawTalk and the Korean Bar Association and places it in comparative perspective with similar disputes in real estate, tax services, telemedicine, and mobility.

Building on two-sided market theory, differentiated-product competition, and recent empirical evidence from Korea’s legal-services market, the paper argues that platform entry in credence-goods markets tends to expand demand by reducing search friction and widening the product space rather than merely reallocating existing demand. The LawTalk case demonstrates how a regulatory shift, from exclusion toward coexistence, can allow for lawful intermediation while maintaining core professional norms.

The paper concludes that policy should govern the interface through transparency, auditability, and a clear separation between advertising and professional services, instead of categorical restrictions that reduce access without welfare gains.

Keywords: digital platforms; legal services; anti-competitive behavior; competition theory; competition policy; digitization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D43 D45 D47 D61 D74 D82 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Published in KIET Industrial Economic Review Vol. 31, No. 1

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.kiet.re.kr/en/pub/ecoreviewDetailView? ... ar=2026&month=&sval=
All articles available for download at www.kiet.re.kr.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ris:kieter:022560

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Industrial Economic Review from Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade Sejong National Research Complex, Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, 370 Sicheong Dae-ro C-dong 8-12F 30147, Republic of Korea. Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Aaron Crossen ().