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SEVILLE, Spain -- The descendants of the composer of Korea¡¯s national anthem said Saturday they will give up the copyright to the anthem if the nation wants them to. The grandson of Ahn Eaktai, Miguel Eaktai Ahn-Guillen, told the Chosun Ilbo by phone his family, including the composer's widow, would do what the Korean people told them since they love Korea.
The copyright to the anthem lapses in 2015. Miguel Eaktai Ahn-Guillen lives in the city of Palma on the Spanish island of Majorca, the home of the composer, his maternal grandfather. He lives with his mother, the third daughter of the composer, and his maternal grandmother.
Ahn Eaktai¡¯s family in Spain inherited the copyright to the national anthem along with that of the composer¡¯s ¡°Symphonic Fantasia Korea,¡± from which the song comes. The family earns some W5.6 million (US$5,450) to W8 million a year in royalties from the use of the song during professional sports events and broadcasts through a trust with the Korea Music Copyright Association.
The government has been trying to secure the copyright to the anthem, and the minister of culture and tourism on Feb. 5 asked the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs to buy it.
(Jin Jung-eon, inmir@chosun.com )
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