Chairman, Copyright Society of
Nigeria, Chief Tony Okoroji, has said that there will be no hiding place for
telecommunication companies operating in Nigeria who do not respect the
intellectual property rights of creative people whose works these companies
exploit for profit.
Speaking at the COSON Stakeholders’
Forum which took place in Ibadan on September 8, 2016, Chief Okoroji said, ‘’If
the ‘telcos’ think we will allow them have a copyright safe haven in Nigeria,
they are wrong; if the telcos think we will get tired of pressuring them to do
the right thing, they are very wrong; If the ‘telcos’ believe that we will ever
stop asking them to give to Peter what belongs to Peter, they are absolutely
wrong’’
According to the former president of
PMAN, in the digital age, the telecommunication companies have become first
line players in the distribution of music. He insisted that it will be suicidal
for the music industry not to insist that these companies play within the rules
and in accordance with the law.
Chief Okoroji said that since COSON
decided to take to court the matter of the horrendous copyright infringement
engaged in by some of the telecommunication companies, the companies have
resorted to ‘cheap and unimpressive blackmail and divide and rule tactics’.
A visibly angry Okoroji said to the
forum, ‘’Some of the ‘telcos’ have begun to issue press releases and launch
insidious campaigns suggesting to our stakeholders that COSON is working
against the interest of its members. They are carrying on a whispering campaign
telling Nigerian musicians that by upholding their rights and exposing the
massive injury being done to them, COSON is endangering their careers. They are
even trying to give the impression that by appointing a few Nigerian artistes
as their ‘brand ambassadors’, the music industry should kneel down and grovel
to them when these companies go home with about 70% of the income from every
piece of music they sell while the artistes, the record labels, the VAS
companies fight over a mere 30% of the money. The composers and
publishers who create the music do not even get one naira as these companies
rob Peter to pay Paul. And we are supposed to keep quiet? They want to turn us
into slaves in our land? God forbid!
Chief Okoroji went on to say,
‘’Somebody should tell these companies that we are committed to this fight and
committed to a new Nigerian economy based on the respect for the rights of
creative people. We want the telecommunication companies to thrive in Nigeria
but they cannot thrive by stealing the intellectual property of Nigerians.
Rather than resolve the issues and work with us in a meaningful way that can
ensure the sustained growth of the Nigerian economy, they want to play ‘Super
man’ with the money they collect from Nigerian subscribers some of who are the
same creative people they are stealing from. I don’t believe they know us. We
have notified the Nigerian Communications Commission and the Nigerian Copyright
Commission. We have informed President Muhammad Buhari. We will take on these
companies whichever way they want it and for as long as they want it’’.
Speaking on the side lines of the
forum, frontline singer, Azeezat Allen, said, ‘’You can see how angry the
chairman is. Maybe the telecom companies should consult the broadcast industry
and ask them how their threat of banning the music of COSON members from the
airwaves worked out. Everyone will recall that the matter even went to the
courts and to the National Assembly but at the end of the day, the broadcast
industry had to sit down and negotiate with COSON and an agreement was reached.
That was exactly the case with the hotel industry too. What they may not know
is that Chief Okoroji, the chairman of COSON is one of the authors of the
Nigerian Copyright Law. He knows the law like the back of his hands and
probably no one in Nigeria understands its application more than he does. He
has written extensively on the subject and his books are being applied by
lawyers and judges. He teaches the subject around the world. These telecom
companies might get some SAN and pay him some big money but at the end of the
day, they will do what they have to do. Anyone who knows Okoroji will tell you
that he does not start something and not finish it. Is that the man they want
to take on? I am sorry for them.’’
