The Fair Trade Commission and the Korea Consumer Agency have confirmed a sharp rise in accommodation prices in Busan due to the BTS world tour. The investigation revealed that accommodation fees increased by up to 7.5 times. Accordingly, the government and Busan City plan to crack down on illegal activities.

Busan City announced that it will conduct special inspections of lodging establishments around the event venue and tourist attractions in preparation for the BTS world tour on June 12 and 13. The main targets of the crackdown are unregistered lodging businesses, failure to display price lists at reception desks, and non-compliance with accommodation fees. Specifically, this includes lodging operations of officetels and houses through shared accommodation platforms without registration, businesses that do not properly disclose price lists, and cases where fees charged exceed the posted accommodation prices.

Ahead of the BTS concert, as excessive pricing surged, Busan City held a 'Public-Private Joint Price Stabilization Task Force Meeting' to devise measures to stabilize prices. This crackdown is interpreted as an extension of those measures. Park Hyung-jun, Mayor of Busan, stated, "We will proactively protect the image of Busan tourism."

BTS announced their world tour schedule along with the release of their fifth full album, "Arirang," marking their full group comeback after about four years. They will hold a free comeback stage at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul next month and perform a total of 82 shows worldwide starting in April. Busan is attracting attention as the only regional venue in South Korea where domestic fans can see BTS.

Following the announcement of BTS's concert schedule, accommodation prices in Busan surged. The usual accommodation fees in the 100,000 KRW range rose to 700,000 KRW, with some establishments setting fees between 1 to 2 million KRW, sparking controversy. According to investigations by the Fair Trade Commission and the Korea Consumer Agency, the average one-night accommodation fee for 135 lodging facilities in Busan during the June concert weekend rose 2.4 times compared to the weekends before and after. Some accommodations were confirmed to charge fees 7.5 times higher.

Among the investigated accommodations, 13 charged fees more than five times their usual rates. In particular, the area around Busan Asiad Main Stadium saw an average increase of 3.5 times, while the areas near Busan Station and Sasang Bus Terminal recorded increases of 3.2 and 3.4 times, respectively.

The government is operating a task force (TF) involving related ministries to eradicate excessive pricing and plans to announce measures addressing the sharp rise in accommodation fees soon. Since accommodation fees are currently set autonomously under existing laws, there is no institutional way to limit them, but the government plans to pressure the lodging market by identifying violations. Accordingly, there is a high possibility of shifting from guidance-centered measures to actual sanctions.

The participation of the National Tax Service in the TF is also drawing attention. Some speculate that there may be inspections of lodging businesses inflating costs or underreporting income. The government has conducted tax investigations on food and daily necessities companies previously identified as factors in price instability, and there is speculation that this scope may be expanded to include lodging businesses.