Evasion of Royalty Payment no Longer Acceptable - DG, NCC

Afam Ezekude, director general of Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has said that the evasion of royalty payment by music users such as broadcast stations, hotels, restaurants, night clubs and advertising agencies will no longer be accepted by the commission.

He made this known while addressing a cross section of music stakeholders at the Select Stakeholders Forum organized by Copyright Society of Nigeria (Coson) in Lagos.

Ezekude who was represented at the occasion by Jacob Fagbemi, Legal Adviser to the Commission said, “It is no longer acceptable for users of music and sound recordings to evade payment of royalties on the excuse of absence of an authorized body for licensing and collection of royalties. It is not only a fundamental breach of rights of artiste, but also an orchestrated sabotage to the national economy as such attitude is militating against attraction of investment to the creative sector.”

He encouraged music users to desist from the illegal exploitation of music copyright and engage with Coson to avoid legal consequences.

He said that it is only with such synergy that, “a genuine development of the creative sector can be assured”.

Ezekude who expressed his satisfaction at the operations of Coson since its approval reiterated the status of Coson as the sole Collective Management Organization for music in Nigeria.

He said, “I want to emphasize as I did at the forum in Abuja, that Coson remains the only organization approved by the Nigerian Copyright Commission to grant licenses and collect royalties on behalf of right owners of music and sound recordings”.

“The approval of Coson in May 2010 as a Collective Management Organization for music and sound recordings was to ensure that Nigeria, like other countries, has a truly national, strong and cohesive platform to harness the potentials of our national creativity.

The decision to approve Coson followed a careful analysis of all submissions received, against the provisions of the law, and the overall imperative of protecting the interest of the Nigerian creative industries and right owners,” he said.