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| L-R: Okoroji and Tuface |
Copyright Society of Nigeria
(COSON), the nation’s sole collective management organization for musical works
and sound recordings has filed an application at the Federal High Court, Lagos
requesting the court to issue an order of interlocutory
injunction restraining NTA-Star TV Network Ltd, owners of Startimes, the pay TV
platform, whether by itself or its officials, privies, servants,
agents or howsoever called from
broadcasting, rebroadcasting or communicating to the public on any channel on
its platform any musical work and/or sound recording belonging to COSON, its
members or affiliates pending the determination of the issues in Suit No.
FHC/CS/1149/14.
The
application filed by Mr. Justin Ige of Creative Legal, is supported by a 15
paragraph affidavit sworn to by Chief Tony Okoroji, the COSON Chairman and well
known advocate for intellectual property rights across Africa. In the affidavit,
COSON claims that the operators of Startimes have never paid any royalties for
the public performance, broadcast or rebroadcast of musical works and sound
recordings belonging to the members, assignors and affiliates of COSON and that
that there is a real likelihood that the operators of Startimes will continue
to engage in the broadcasting, rebroadcasting and public performance of the
musical works and sound recordings belonging to the members, assignors and
affiliates of COSON during the pendency of the suit if they are not restrained.
The application filed by COSON is indeed a fallout from the
originating summons initiated by the operators of Startimes, which had gone to
court asking for an order restraining COSON ‘from further writing, threatening
or obstructing the Applicant’s business or demanding for royalties pending the
determination of the substantive suit’
In
opposing the application by the operators of Startimes, Chief Tony Okoroji, the
Chairman of COSON, deposed to a counter affidavit in which he stated that in
compliance with the law and respect for the rights of the owners of the
intellectual property deployed by all broadcasting platforms in Nigeria, the
Broadcasting Organizations of Nigeria (BON), the Independent Broadcasting
Association of Nigeria (IBAN), the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the
Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) and COSON on May 21, 2014 at a widely
reported event in Lagos signed an agreement by which every broadcast operator
in Nigeria is bound to obtain a licence and pay royalties to COSON for the
broadcast of musical works and sound recordings. According to Chief Okoroji’s
affidavit, despite the COSON/BON/IBAN/NBC/NCC Agreement, despite the provisions
of the law, despite the efforts made by COSON to get the operators of Startimes
to respect the intellectual property of COSON members, affiliates and assignors
and despite the fact that other organizations in a similar trade as the operators
of Startimes and operating under the same environment have obtained the licence
of COSON and are paying royalties for
the copying, broadcasting and rebroadcasting of musical works and sound
recordings by their establishments, the operators of Startimes continue to
behave as if they are above the law and permitted to freely exploit the
intellectual property of free citizens without consequence.
Furthermore,
Chief Okoroji stated that the behaviour of the operators of Startimes which he
stated is unacceptable in most countries around the world cannot be allowed to
continue as it will lead to massive loss of jobs to the Nigerian nation, significant
loss of revenue to the country and heavy capital flight from Nigeria;
Commenting on the developments, COSON General Manager, Mr.
Chinedu Chukwuji said, “We have said it loud and clear that if anyone slaps
COSON once, we will respond with five slaps. It is clear that we did not start
this fight. With all humility, we are the masters of hard ball and anyone who
thinks that COSON will be distracted or intimidated by whatever schemes or
maneuvers they may engage in, had better bury the thought. COSON will continue
to forcefully represent musicians and the music industry, a group of people
whose rights have been trampled upon for too long in
Nigeria. Apart from having on our board some of the nation’s best intellectual
property lawyers and experts, we also engage some of the best external lawyers
in the business. We are determined to establish a culture of respect for
intellectual property rights in Nigeria. It is game over for abusers of
copyright in Nigeria. There will be no hiding place for them”
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