A man has been instructed by a court to concede to his wife’s demands for a divorce because of his addiction to Internet pornography, according to a verdict from the Seoul Family Court on Tuesday.

The wife, who filed for a divorce litigation against her husband, had reportedly been attracted to the man’s religious devotion when they married in 2010.

She did not known that he was addicted to online lewd material as they married after only six months of dating. Despite frequent quarrels, the man’s habit of watching pornography continued.

Further, the man has been placed under police investigation into allegations that he spread a video clip on the Internet of the couple having sexual relations.

The court’s ruling instructed that “the plaintiff and defendant may divorce.”

It said their marriage has faced a breakdown, which is difficult to recover due to the man’s addiction to pornography and the dispute over the alleged circulation of their sex tape.

“The factors lead to requirements for divorce, stipulated by civil laws,” read the verdict. It added that the husband’s practices went against the life of a committed Christian.

Meanwhile, in a different case an appeals court ruled that “a couple not having sex for 23 years” was not sufficient grounds for divorce.

The couple’s sexual relations began to deteriorate about 30 years ago when the husband initially suffered an inflammation of the prostate, a condition that developed into cancer. He eventually underwent surgery in 2007.

But investigators testified that this was not the only reason why the couple stopped having intercourse. The man would often beat his wife, once so badly she ended up with a concussion.

The woman left home in 2004 after a quarrel and decided to file for a divorce after more than 40 years of marriage.

A lower court, in its initial ruling, granted the divorce on the grounds of the marriage being sexless and the husband instigating verbal and physical abuse. He was ordered to pay alimony.

However, the appellate court overturned the ruling, saying a loss of sexual drive is not uncommon among older couples.

The high court clarified that the husband was nearly 50 when the couple stopped having a normal sex life and it took in consideration that he was suffering from prostate cancer.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)