1.2 million pirated goods seized by Nigerian authorities
The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has announced that it seized more than 1.2 million pirated goods in the first six months of 2017.
The literary, musical, software and broadcast material would have been worth over ₦1.2 billion ($2.9 million) if sold legitimately.
Among the haul were three shipping containers of pirated materials valued at over ₦275 million ($763,000) that were seized by customs in January.
The NCC released its figures for the first half of 2017 and also revealed it had arrested 48 suspected pirates across the country.
Two convictions against film and book pirates at the Federal High Court of Lagos were also secured, according to the figures.
Director-general of the Commission, Afam Ezekude, stressed that the impounded items represent income that would have been lost by legitimate rights owners and taxable income revenue that would have been lost by the federal government.
“The director-general assured that the Commission is committed to delivering on its mandate, adding that it has intensified its inspection and monitoring exercise in copyright piracy-endemic outlets across the country,” the report concluded.
As reported by WIPR in 2013, Ezekude revealed that the Nigerian government had been taking steps to tackle piracy in the country.
According to news website The Guardian Nigeria, Ezekude said the NCC would be working on a draft bill to better prosecute online copyright offenders and that arrangements have been finalised to introduce an e-registration system to enable IP owners to register works online.
“Nigeria needs a law that would be in line with the digital age; we have concluded plans to build appropriate infrastructure to tackle internet piracy through online tracking. Piracy kills creativity and it persists due to inability to enforce copyright laws,” he said.
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