Attention all Nigerian Copyright Stakeholders

Attention all Nigerian Copyright Stakeholders

By Afro Ng'ombe   Thursday, September 19, 2013   1 comment:

Via the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) website, Afro Leo learns of an important meeting to occur in Lagos on 9th October.  That’s in just a few weeks!  The meeting is to discuss the new Levy on goods that can be used for infringing copyright. Full details on the meeting are below.

The Nigerian Copyright Act authorizes the Minister of Justice to implement a levy on material capable of being used to infringe copyright.  (Section 40.)  Levy amounts are to be published in the official government Gazette.  The current Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, has published new Levy information [pdf] that explains who pays the levy, when the levy must be paid, how levy funds are distributed and what materials or organizations are exempt from the levy.  Afro Leo notes that the Levy is dated 2012 so either this Little Leo or the NCC is a bit behind, perhaps both.

There is also a schedule outlining levy amounts.  Generally, digital storage media is 3%, paper is 2%.  Digital-duplicating devices are 2% and paper-duplicating devices are 1%.  Collected funds are distributed 40% to programs within the NCC and 60% to approved collecting societies.  Considering the history of conflict in Nigeria over approvals for collecting societies, Afro Leo wonders if the Levy will spawn more clashes.

When: Wed. 9th October 2013 at 10am
Where: Manufacturers Association of Nigeria House, No. 77 Obafemi Awolowo Way, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria
More info: http://copyright.gov.ng/index.php/public-notice

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Copyright reform in Nigeria & a reader's comment on private copying levy

Copyright reform in Nigeria & a reader's comment on private copying levy

By IPcommentator   Tuesday, January 29, 2013   No comments:

On 7 December 2012, this blog reported that a private copying levy system is set to be introduced in Nigeria (see Nigeria to impose copyright levies on "everything under the sun"). The post received the second highest views in that month; but more important was the comment by Jeremy de Beer who directed the rest of us to further research - some of which he authored - on this topic. So, for the benefit of our readers with research interests in this area, this is what he said:

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"Thanks to Afro Leo for the great reporting on this important development. 

About the system in Ghana, and the potential impact on access to educational resources, Afro-IP readers might be interested in Access to Knowledge in Africa: The Role of Copyright http://bit.ly/qbxpw9. During fieldwork research to produce this book, the authors conducted interviews with key stakeholders about the origins and impacts of Ghana's levy system.

It is interesting that Nigeria is moving in the opposite direction of countries that are phasing out experimentation with levies over the past 10-15 years, such as Canada. See http://bit.ly/Vcuydp. For more on the practical and conceptual incompatibilities between levies and digital rights management systems, readers might be interested in De Beer, J., 2006. Locks & Levies. Denver University Law Review, 84(1), pp.143–180 http://ssrn.com/abstract=952128. 

And on the impact of levies on the market for digital content, albeit in a much different socio-economic and cultural context, readers might be interested in De Beer, J., 2005. The Role of Levies in Canada’s Digital Music Marketplace. Canadian Journal of Law and Technology, 4(3), pp.153–168. http://ssrn.com/abstract=877191."

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Still on Nigeria, Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) invites you:

This Leo loves the notion of public consultations (Looking at Europe, Afro Leo is quick to tell me that public consultations help policymakers decide whether they should press ahead with a ready-made decision or change course). Hopefully your voice will count for something if you join the NCC on 19th and/or 20th February 2013 for a round table discussion on how to reform the copyright regime in Nigeria. For more details, click here (If you  will be attending, Afro-IP would like to receive a brief from you -anonymously or otherwise - on what was discussed)

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