Who owns the right to one's face? According to South Korean law, not celebrities.

Several high profile cases of Korean celebrities suing business operators ended with the Korean Supreme Court ruling that is is legal for people to use the photos of celebrities to promote goods without permission.

The ruling against Korean actress Song Hye Gyo followed similar rulings in cases surrounding the usage of images of miss A's Suzy, After School's Uee, and, perhaps the most popular South Korean in the entire world, Psy. All four celebrities sued businesses, mostly online shopping malls, for using their photos to promote products.

The Korean legal system currently does not demand that business pay for the right to use images of celebrities, leading to celebrities losing out on earnings.

Korean celebrities are popular models throughout Asia, with top stars earning millions of dollars in contract fees. In 2013, enewsWorld reported that miss a's Suzy earned nearly $9 million USD within a span of a few months due to advertisements alone.

Despite the large fees earned, the Korean courts ruled that none of these celebrities could take legal action against businesses using their image without expressed permission.

The K-Pop Herald reported that the Korean Supreme Court, the highest court in the country, said that in the case of Song Hye Gyo, the actress and her company could not prove any financial loss, despite six online shopping malls using her image to promote earrings that the actress wore in the 2013 drama The Winter, That Wind Blows.

The only way for Korean celebrities to take legal action against businesses using their image without permission would be a change in South Korean law.

"In order to protect celebrities' publicity rights, legislation should come first. When the relevant bill pending in the National Assembly is passed, publicity rights can be completely recognized," said Song Hye Kyo's attorney, Jeong Chul Seung.