NCC proposes piracy bill, to impose two percent levy on digital products

folarin okunola

April 27, 2015 11:50 AM

The NCC is stepping up its efforts on fighting piracy and give copyright owners what is rightfully theirs.

NCC DG, Afam Ezekude.

The Nigerian Copyright Commission is proposing a bill to impose stringent penalties on digital (online) copyright piracy.

The bill, called the Nigerian Copyright Act, when passed into law after its been sent to the 8th National Assembly, would enable the commission to join forces with Internet Service Providers to identify sites being used for online copyright infringements and subsequently shut them down so as to bring the issue to a barest minimum.

The NCC has also concluded plans to impose a two percent Copyright Levy Order on photocopying machines, DVD’s, phones and other digital products made in the country or being imported before the end of May, 2015.

This was disclosed by the Director General of the Commission, Afam Ezekude, while briefing reporters in Abuja. He explained that a minimal levy would be imposed on digital products which can be used to infringe on peoples’ copyrights and the levy would also be a way of compensating copyright owners.

The DG pointed out that the Levy Order was awaiting the approval of the Minister of Finance for its implementation. “As we speak, the order is awaiting a nod from the Minister of Finance so that we can start implementation, it is important that this Levy Order is implemented so that our right owners can get what is rightfully theirs.

Before the Levy Order was put in the gazette, we did the relevant consultations with the industry people that would be affected like the Importers Association of Nigeria and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and they keyed into it before it was gazette,” he said.

Ezekude further affirmed that it is now an age of online piracy, adding that the government needs to address the issue by making the penalties for copyright infringement more stringent in order to discourage people from engaging in the act.

He stated that the NCC was making efforts to bring the nation’s Copyright laws in line with international treaties Nigeria signed, and a need to ratify those treaties to ensure that they are a part of Nigerian copyright law.

The DG noted that the commission had in the last four years carried out about 202 anti-piracy operations and arrested over 400 suspected pirates, securing 53 criminal convictions and seized over six million items of copyright works valued at N6.5 billion.

folarin okunola